Concerns of people who live in the Gaza Strip are mounting following the Israeli threats to carry out another large-scale war against the enclave similar to last winter's "Cast Lead" operation.

Khamis Abu Hasira, a 24-year-old Gaza resident, expressed his fear that Israel would soon initiate another destructive war against Gaza, adding "people here are following the news on the radios and televisions all the time and living in a hysteric status due to the Israeli threats."

"I expect another war would occur in any moment, because last winter's war was preceded by similar Israeli threats and similar escalation," he told Xinhua, referring to Israeli air and ground strikes in the last couple of weeks which killed at least 12 people.

According to Gaza-based political analyst Talak Oukal, the Israeli threats are "serious threats," adding that "the government of Benjamin Netanyahu is feeling uncomfortable with the current situation in Gaza."

"The general atmosphere shows that the Gaza Strip will soon face another escalated military action, and the Palestinians should seriously consider the current Israeli threats," said Oukal.

Oukal's stance was supported by Nazir Mjalli, an expert in the Israeli affairs. Mjalli told Xinhua that "there are real indications on the ground that Israel would launch another military offensive," adding "such military offensives became regular for Israel."

"Former Israeli governments carried out wars on Gaza every five years, and then it was reduced to every three years," Mjalli said, adding that "I believe that another war against Gaza will be carried out soon."

However, Hamas ruled out that Israel would carry out another war soon, saying "the current Israeli threats are just a psychological war that Israel is practicing against the population of the Gaza Strip."

Gaza-based Hamas lawmaker Ismail el-Ashqar, said that the latest Israeli military escalation "was part of a psychological war in order to confuse the social textile of the Palestinian society." However, he expected that the Israeli army would rather focus on more frequent airstrikes against leaders.

"I don't think that Israel would carry out another similar war against the Gaza Strip," said el-Ashqar, adding "there is a competition among the Israeli political parties to convey their political crises by threatening to carry out another war against Gaza."

Prime Minister of the deposed Hamas government Ismail Haneya said on Tuesday during a weekly meeting of his cabinet that "in case Israel carries out a war on Gaza, our first priority is to defend ourselves," calling on the international community to work on preventing another Israeli war on Gaza.

Meanwhile, a Gaza-based senior Islamic Hamas movement's leader on Wednesday said that the Palestinian people cannot bear another Israeli war.

Speaking to the Lebanon-based Al-Quds Satellite TV, Ayman Taha said "the Palestinians in Gaza experienced the scourge of war and are still suffering from its consequences," affirming that "they will not tolerate another war."

"The humanitarian situation in Gaza is on the verge of collapse due to the Israeli siege," said Taha, whose group has been controlling the impoverished enclave forcibly since July 2007.

During the offensive that lasted for 22 days last winter, around 1,440 Palestinians were killed and more than 5,000 wounded, according to official figures and Gaza-based rights groups.

(Xinhua News Agency January 14, 2010)