Step 1: Elimination of Hamas, Step 2: Elimination of hidden resistance forces, Step 3: Establishment of a new regime.
Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant announced the goals of the war against the Palestinian armed group Hamas on the 20th (local time). He appeared before the Knesset (Parliament) on this day and said that the war in the Gaza Strip would proceed in three stages. “We will completely eliminate the Hamas organization, destroy the military and government functions by eliminating hidden resistance groups, and establish a new regime so that Israel can control the Gaza Strip.” “It is a complete release from responsibility,” he explained each step.
This is the first time that Minister Gallant has disclosed the specific goals of the war since the war broke out due to Hamas’ attack on Israel on the 7th. A day before, he said that the deployment of ground troops into the Gaza Strip, the stronghold of Hamas, was imminent, and visited a nearby military unit and said, “Right now we are looking at the Gaza Strip from the outside, but soon we will see it from the inside.”
Minister Gallant explained to the National Assembly, “We are waging the first phase of the war through airstrikes,” and added, “We will then seek to destroy Hamas by destroying its operational facilities and destroying its infrastructure through ground warfare.” He added that the second phase will involve eliminating hidden resistance forces.
Minister Gallant emphasized that the goal is to create a new security reality for the people of Israel and the residents of the Gaza Strip, saying, “Step 3 is to create a new regime in the Gaza Strip and Israel to free itself from responsibility for the Gaza Strip.”
On this day, the Israeli military announced in a separate statement that most of the approximately 200 hostages kidnapped by Hamas and held in the Gaza Strip survived. It is reported that the hostages were detained by Hamas and another Palestinian armed group, ‘Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ)’, and were dispersed throughout the Gaza Strip.
Source: Donga
Mark Jones is a world traveler and journalist for News Rebeat. With a curious mind and a love of adventure, Mark brings a unique perspective to the latest global events and provides in-depth and thought-provoking coverage of the world at large.