DAIAL AL BARA, Gaza Strip (AP) — Israeli Defense Minister warned on Friday that Gaza city could be destroyed unless Hamas accepts Israel’s term.
The day after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he would allow the military to carry out major operations to seize Gaza city, Israel Katz warned that the largest city in the enclave could “change into Rafa and Beit Hanon.”
“The gates of hell open quickly to the heads of Hamas murderers and rapists in Gaza, until they agree to Israeli terms to end the war,” Katz wrote in X’s post.
He revised Israel’s ceasefire demand: release of all hostages and Hamas’ full disarmament. Hamas said he would release prisoners of war in exchange for ending the war, but refused to disarmament without the creation of a Palestinian state.
A wide range of projects in Gaza city You can start within a few days.
Gaza City is the hub of Hamas military and governance that Israel considers to be a large tunnel network. It also protects hundreds of thousands of civilians and still houses some of the Strip’s critical infrastructure and healthcare facilities.
Hamas said earlier this week that it agreed. Arab intermediaries propose a ceasefireif you accept it into Israel, you can prevent attacks before they occur. The parties have not negotiated directly, and similar announcements have been made in the past, and have not led to a ceasefire.
The proposal outlines a step-by-step transaction, including hostage-convict exchanges, and Israeli military pullbacks, but the talks continue in a long-term ceasefire. The Israeli leader has resisted such terms since waived a similar agreement earlier this year amid strong opposition from Netanyahu’s Union and his rights.
Many Israelis fear that after the October 7, 2023 attacks of Hamas-led extremists, around 20 hostages will attack that they are still alive. Aid groups and international leaders have warned that this will exacerbate Gaza’s humanitarian crisis.
The logistics of evacuating civilians are expected to be daunting. Many residents say that repeatedly displacement is pointless as it is not safe anywhere in Gaza, but medical groups are unable to make Israel’s calls to move patients south, and no facilities will receive them.
However, Netanyahu argues that the attack is the surest way to free the prisoners and crush Hamas.
“These two things — defeat Hamas and release all the hostages — will go hand in hand,” Netanyahu said Thursday while touring a nearby command center in southern Israel.
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The Mets reported from Jerusalem.
