JERUSALEM (JWN)—The IDF’s Southern Command is making preparations for a possible large-scale operation in the Gaza Strip within a few months, according to The Jerusalem Post .

The decision by the General Staff follows increasing concern over the amount and types of weapons smuggled into Gaza in recent months, particularly Russian- made, shoulder-fired anti-aircraft missiles and anti-tank missiles smuggled from Libya during its civil war.

Hamas is believed to have 20,000 fighters organized into five brigades covering  different sections of the Gaza Strip.

“Gaza is possibly Israel’s most volatile front today,” a member of the General Staff said this week. “It is a front that can explode at any given moment.”