JERUSALEM, ISRAEL – Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Monday that half of the Hamas terrorists had been killed or wounded among visiting Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) troops, and that 18 of Hamas’s 24 battalions had been destroyed so far. Stated.
Prime Minister Netanyahu spoke in Latrun, a military stronghold overlooking the road connecting Tel Aviv and Jerusalem, where British-trained Jordanian forces resisted Israel in the 1948 war. Israel occupied it in 1967 after Jordan entered the war by shelling West Jerusalem.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu greets female IDF soldiers in Latrun, Israel, February 5, 2024 (Haim Zak GPO)
In a statement released by the Prime Minister’s Office, Prime Minister Netanyahu said (translated by the Government Press Office):
Complete victory is essential to ensuring Israel’s security. A complete victory is the only way to ensure the additional historic peace agreement that awaits us. A complete victory would deal a fatal blow to the axis of evil: Iran, Hezbollah, the Houthis, and, of course, Hamas.
Therefore, there is no substitute for complete victory. Just think about what will happen if there is no complete victory. The displaced people will not return and the next massacre will only be a matter of time as Iran, Hezbollah and others celebrate here and destroy the Middle East. Therefore, there is no substitute for complete victory.
After meeting with you and your commanders several times on the ground in the Gaza Strip, I want to say to you, I am proud of your heroism, your fierceness, your determination, and your accomplishments in this coming victory. I’m impressed with our ability to. According to our calculations, as of today, we have already destroyed more than half of their forces, that is, killed or wounded. We destroyed 18 of their 24 battalions. We are actively demilitarizing remaining terrorists by carrying out raids and destroying underground networks. We are on the path to complete victory and we want to tell you that we are committed to it and will never give up. We will not stop the war without achieving this goal of complete victory, restoring security to both the South and the North.
The prime minister’s insistence that the goal remains “total victory” suggests that only the Israeli soldiers around him are willing to do so, as the US reportedly wants Israel to accept a cease-fire without destroying Hamas. It was also a statement aimed at an American audience.
Caroline Glick of the Jewish News Syndicate says: I got it., CIA Director William Burns announced through Egypt and Qatar that Hamas would release the remaining 130 or so Israeli hostages, and in return Israel would likely release thousands of Palestinian terrorists and conduct one-on-one attacks in Gaza. They are trying to negotiate a deal to stop fighting. -2 months — The US reportedly hopes this pause will make it difficult for Israel to resume fighting. The Biden administration also wants a Palestinian state to emerge from the war.
If the White House is successful, Israel will be unable to destroy Hamas’ military capabilities and remove it from its governing presence in Gaza. The deal has been stalled by infighting within Hamas, but U.S. pressure on Israel has increased.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who has become increasingly hostile to Israel in his public statements, is scheduled to visit Israel this week, and despite evidence that Hamas is planning an attack, he has warned Israel against military operations in Gaza. It is likely that there will be pressure to withdraw the Re-appearance Where the IDF left.
Friday, U.S. Sen. Mark Warner (D-VA) Said fox news sunday Israel “only managed to knock out about a third of Hamas’s fighters,” the newspaper announced, but this figure was apparently based on US intelligence estimates. wall street journal. If the Biden administration can claim that Israel is not making progress against Hamas, it appears to be able to assert its own vision for ending the conflict.
But Israeli leaders think otherwise.
Minister of Defense Yoav Gallant Said According to the Times of Israel, “Yahya Sinwar, the leader of the Gaza terrorist organization, is on the run, unable to contact his fighters, and forced to flee from hideout to hideout in hot pursuit by the IDF. “Ta”. He reiterated, as he had said from the beginning, that the war requires a long effort.
Breitbart News asked Israeli government spokesman Eilon Levy on Monday about Israel’s impending attack on a Hamas stronghold in Rafah, Gaza’s southernmost city on the Egyptian border. Israel will likely need to take control of the area to prevent Hamas from escaping.
Egypt warned Israel not to launch an attack on Rafah, fearing the attack would cause Palestinian refugees to flood into Gaza. The Biden administration does not appear to have any intention of using its influence with the Egyptian regime to persuade it to relent.
Levy Said “Our forces will naturally turn their attention to the remaining areas, including southern Gaza. We will completely destroy Hamas within the Gaza Strip and prevent any resurgence of terrorist threats that will only undermine stability and security in the region. We believe it is critical to the overall security architecture of the region that Gaza remains permanently demilitarized to prevent this.”
He said the continued existence of Hamas “is not in the interests of neighboring countries,” including Egypt.
Joel B. Pollack is a senior editor at Breitbart News. Breitbart News Sunday Sunday nights from 7:00 PM to 10:00 PM ET (4:00 PM to 7:00 PM PT) on Sirius XM Patriot. He is the author of the recent book, The Zionist Conspiracy (And How to Participate in It), now available on Audible. He is also the author of an e-book. Neither Free nor Fair: The 2020 US Presidential Election. He is the recipient of the 2018 Robert Novak Journalism Alumni Fellowship. Follow him on Twitter @joelpolak.
