PUTTING BARAK UNDER BINOCULARS. According to the headline from The Jerusalem Post: Barak has already shown he is tougher than Peretz. Let's face it--this is not saying much, especially when you are talking about the man who as Prime Minister rushed Israel out of Lebanon. Still, there is an obvious difference:

Unlike his predecessor, Amir Peretz, who was a strong proponent of the policy of restraint vis-à-vis the Kassam rocket fire from Gaza, Barak has ordered the IDF to take a tougher stance in responding to the attacks and has allowed the IDF to take greater risks when operating inside the Strip.

Where Peretz would have held back the green light for an air strike that could end in civilian casualties, Barak is more inclined to say yes. He has also ordered the army to use additional and riskier intelligence-collecting methods when preparing for targeted killings and strikes against Kassam rocket squads.

The IDF's Southern Command is under orders to use all available defensive and offensive measures to prevent the rocket attacks, and has carved out something of a "security zone" two kilometers into Gaza, the depth it has been authorized by Barak and Chief of General Staff Lt.-Gen. Gabi Ashkenazi to operate within.

According to military sources, the relatively high number of deaths from IDF strikes this past week is also due to chance and the defense establishment's newfound ability to quickly "close circles" - military jargon for translating and utilizing real-time intelligence in immediate operations.

This is of course imprressive--and a welcome change, but here is the key:

At the moment, the army is holding back from initiating a large-scale operation into Gaza, despite intelligence indicating that Hamas and Islamic Jihad are smuggling unprecedented amounts of weaponry into Gaza. In the end, however, OC Southern Command Maj.-Gen. Yoav Galant's assumption is that there will be a need for an operation in the Strip to curb the Hamas military buildup.

It is one thing for Israel to take small actions, safe actions that are not likely to draw criticism from Israel's critics. It is something else entirely when major action is obviously called for.

So what is it going to be?

Technorati Tag: Israel and Barak.