Netanyahu: The Israeli operation in Gaza continues with full force
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stated that Israel does not currently intend to suspend its military operation in the Gaza Strip and that this campaign continues "with full force" with the support of other countries, led by the United States.
In a speech he gave today, Sunday, following his chairing a session of the small ministerial council for political and security affairs and holding a meeting with the army leadership, Netanyahu stressed that the aim of the operation, which he called "the Guardian of the Walls," is to "restore calm and security" and "force the aggressor to pay the price." And "restoring deterrence", adding that Israel will need "some time" to achieve this goal.
The Prime Minister stated that the Israeli army had bombed more than a thousand targets, including "underground infrastructure", of "Hamas" movement in the Gaza Strip since the beginning of the new escalation, adding that the movement "sustained a targeted, but not fatal, strike."
Netanyahu stated that the Israeli army was doing everything it could "to reduce civilian casualties in Gaza as much as possible."
The Israeli Prime Minister stated: "It will take time, and there is pressure, but we also have tangible support, primarily from the United States ... We enjoy international support and benefit from it."
Netanyahu said the high-rise building targeted by an Israeli air strike contained an intelligence office as well as the offices of the Associated Press and Al-Jazeera.
Netanyahu explained to CBS that the building housed "an intelligence office for the Palestinian organization plotting and organizing attacks on Israeli civilians, so it is a completely legitimate target."
He added that Israel transferred information regarding Saturday's attack to the US authorities.
In turn, Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz stressed during the press conference that "the actions of the Israeli army in Gaza are in full conformity with international law."
Gantz pledged to "restore calm in the south," praising the recent operation carried out by the Israeli army "to destroy Hamas tunnels in Gaza."
For his part, the Chief of the General Staff of the Israeli Army, Aviv Kochavi, said during the conference that "Hamas" committed a "serious mistake" when it decided to enter a new confrontation, saying that the aforementioned tunnel destruction process inflicted a "severe blow" to the movement.
Follow our latest local and sports news, and the latest political and economic developments via Google news