Sun, 25 Jan 2009 16:26:46 GMT

The likely soon-to-be Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, applauds the "brilliant" performance of the Israeli army in Gaza.

In an interview with the Wall Street Journal, Netanyahu said the war against the Gaza Strip was 'a clear win' for Tel Aviv.

Tel Aviv launched Operation Cast Lead on December 27 to put an end to rocket attacks against southern Israeli towns. At least 1,330 Palestinians died during the offensive, while some 5,450 others were reported wounded.

The huge number of civilian casualties in the densely-populated coastal sliver has sparked global outrage.

Meanwhile, on the Israeli side, at least 12 soldiers were killed during the offensive -- which ended on January 18. Hamas puts the number of Israeli casualties at hundreds.

Netanyahu, who enjoys a lead in pre-election polls, said the military campaign had 'humiliated Hamas' and had caused a political rift within the resistance movement.

"We have to make sure that the radicals do not perceive this as a victory," he said.

The Likud party leader, however, added that the "optimal outcome" would have been a regime change in Gaza.

The Hamas movement was democratically elected in the 2006 Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC) elections. Israel has never recognized the group.

While the Gaza offensive boosted the approval ratings of the ruling center-right Kadima party for the February 10 elections, it also gave a chance to the right-wing parties to pitch in their hawkish credentials.

Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni warned Sunday that a "far-right government led by [Israeli opposition leader] Netanyahu is likely to provoke conflict with the new [US] administration."

Pollsters, according to AFP, predict that the elections will result in a coalition of Netanyahu's Likud and Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni's Kadima.

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