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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu: "We are fighting for our existence"
Photo: Ronen Zvulun / AP
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has made it clear that the Israeli military's ground offensive in the Gaza Strip will continue. At a press conference in Tel Aviv, he said the war would continue until Hamas was destroyed, according to the Times of Israel, among others. Relatives of hostages abducted by Hamas to the Gaza Strip reiterated their calls for an end to the fighting and negotiations to return the remaining abductees alive to their families.
Protests in Tel Aviv grew louder after the Israeli military (IDF) accidentally shot dead three hostages during an operation in the northern Gaza Strip. Netanyahu has learned lessons from the deaths of the three young men and promised to continue "military and diplomatic efforts" to return all hostages, but military pressure is needed.
The international community is also pushing for a new ceasefire due to the catastrophic humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip. According to the Hamas-controlled Ministry of Health, some 18,800 people have been killed in the Gaza Strip so far. Aid deliveries to date are far from sufficient to supply the civilian population. But Netanyahu made it clear: "We are fighting for our existence. And we will continue until victory."
Gaza Strip to be demilitarized after war
When asked by journalists what would happen after the war if Israel won the Gaza Strip, Netanyahu replied, according to the Times of Israel, that the area would be demilitarized so as not to pose a threat to Israel. The army will be responsible for security in the Gaza Strip "because there is no other factor that will ensure the fight against terrorism." "And I can tell you that there will be a civilian government that does not educate its children to destroy Israel," Netanyahu continued.
If Hamas is destroyed, Israel will focus on the northern border with Lebanon and Hezbollah, Netanyahu said. Either there will be a diplomatic solution on the northern border, "or another way" to settle the situation.
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