THE Israeli Prime Minister, Mr Shimon Peres, has strongly rejected all suggestions that the upcoming general election has been a factor in his decision to unleash a fierce air blitz against guerrilla targets not only in south Lebanon, but in Beirut where Israel has not bombed since 1982.
Yet, despite his protestations and the fact that the rocket attacks on northern Israel by the Iranian-backed Shi'ite Hizbullah movement clearly left him with little option but to strike back, the backdrop of the elections on May 29th cannot be ignored.
When members of Mr Peres's Labour Party visited the rocket-hit northern town of Qiryat, Shemona two days before Israel launched its air bombardment of Lebanon, they were jeered. Mr Peres, on a tour of the army's, northern command, was advised to steer clear of the town where angry residents took to the streets, burning tyres and carrying signs with the message "Peres you have failed."
In stark contrast, the opposition Likud leader, Mr Benjamin Netanyahu, who is running against Mr Peres in the prime ministerial race, was cheered loudly as he walked the streets of Qiryat Shemona, criticising the government and accusing it of projecting weakness by not striking back at Hizbullah.
But the air assault has radically changed the mood in Qiryat Shemona, boosting residents morale - and along with it possibly Mr Peres's electoral hopes as well. Yesterday Qiryat Shemona residents gathered around Mr Peres as he surveyed property damage from one of the katyusha rockets which had fallen earlier in the day. "We support you" shouted one resident.
Mr Peres's decision to strike deep into Lebanon is likely to help the prime minister in his efforts to portray himself as Mr Security. That's an image which got his predecessor, the late Yitzhak Rabin, elected in 1992, and it is one Mr Peres has coveted ever since a spate of Hamas suicide bombings just over a month ago killed 58 people in Israel and raised doubts in the hearts of many Israelis as to the wisdom of the peace process.
Some political pundits had suggested the policy of restraint adopted by Mr Peres in south Lebanon until Thursday's air-blitz - the prime minister had hoped the Americans would successfully pressure the Syrians into reigning in Hizbullah would cost him political support.
However, the decision to strike, even if not motivated by electoral considerations, will clearly firm up Mr Peres's security image and may well help him to win over many of the undecided voters.
If the operation is likely to boost his electoral chances, it is also likely to make life more difficult for the opposition Likud. Not only is Mr Netanyahu and his party forced to give unqualified support to the government's decision to strike, but what's more, military action in the past has tended to rally the public around the government in an act of solidarity.
Opposition members who loudly criticised the government for not launching a strong reprisal raid only days ago, were forced to swallow hard when interviewed yesterday. But the elections are still a month-and-a-half away and Mr Peres will do well to remember how his double-digit lead in the polls over Mr Netanyahu evaporated over night after the suicide bombings.