Int'l force possible for Gaza too: Italy
International troops could be sent to the Gaza Strip if the force being deployed in Lebanon proves successful, Italian foreign minister Massimo D'Alema said in remarks published yesterday.
"The idea of sending UN troops to the Gaza Strip is currently being aired. But I think that if things go well in Lebanon, a similar process could also begin in the Gaza Strip," D'Alema told Israel's left-leaning Haaretz newspaper.
Italy plans to send up to 3,000 troops to the international force in Lebanon following the 34-day war between Israel and Hezbollah.
For all latest news, follow The Daily Star's Google News channel. Israel withdrew from the Gaza Strip one year ago, but launched a major ground offensive in the coastal territory after Palestinian militants kidnapped an Israeli soldier in a cross-border raid on June 25.
The Israeli offensive has killed more than 165 Palestinians in Gaza, more than half of them civilians.
Comments