Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) may delay its offensive into the northern Gaza Strip, part of Operation Summer Rains, after Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert convened security consultation meeting Thursday afternoon.

The Israeli troops and tanks, poised to pour into northern Gaza, will possibly change the time of entrance from tonight to anther date due to new considerations, Israeli news website Ynet reported.

Israeli Defense Minister Amir Peretz gave the green light on Wednesday evening to the second stage of the Operation Summer Rains, which began early on Wednesday with Israeli troops pouring into the southern Gaza Strip to press for the release of an IDF soldier kidnapped by Palestinian militants during a predawn attack on a military post near Gaza border on Sunday.

Peretz said every operation of IDF should be thoroughly examined "in this most critical moment", and the possibility of a breakthrough in compelling Palestinian militants to release Cpl. Gilad Shalit still exists.

The IDF confirmed that at least 60 Hamas government ministers, parliament members and activists were arrested during a swift operation carried out overnight in Ramallah, Nablus, Qalqilya, Jenin and Jerusalem.

Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has vowed to take "extreme actions" to bring the kidnapped soldier home.

Source: Xinhua