WAR 'TO SPREAD'

Fear of conflict on three fronts as Israel prepares massive assault of Gaza

- CHRIS HUGHES

FEARS of a wider Middle East conflict were mounting last night as thousands of Israeli troops prepared to launch a devastating ground, sea and air assault on Gaza.

With the attack imminent, Israel was facing war on three fronts including the West Bank and Hezbollah in Lebanon.

Israel has continued air strikes and artillery salvos on Gaza as Hamas and Islamic Jihad fired rockets into Israeli cities such as Ashkelon.

At Israel's northern border with Lebanon, Hezbollah has threatened to attack should Israeli troops storm Gaza.

There is concern violence could explode from the West Bank, where Israeli troops and Shin Bet officers seized a large number of weapons and at least 30 Hamas members.

It is feared Iran and Syria could also become involved in the conflict.

Israel Defense Forces are targeting Hamas, whose 2000-plus fighters killed more than 1000 Israelis after breaking out of Gaza over a week ago.

Last Saturday's raid has sparked the worse regional crisis in decades.

Israel now faces two major dilemmas - attack, risking a wider war and the deaths of around 150 of its citizens held hostage - or wait and appear weak.

There is also increasing pressure over the 2.1million Palestinian civilians who face a deepening struggle for supplies.

There are fears they are being used as human shields, with reports of Hamas gunmen blocking Palestinians trying to flee south across Gaza. It follows dire warnings from the IDF that if they do not, they will be killed in air strikes.