Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has approved an “operational plan” to attack Rafah in Gaza. Netanyahu says that the plan that he’s already approved includes a renewed push into southern Gaza. He also claimed that the Israeli military was prepared for “the evacuation of the civilian population and for the provision of humanitarian assistance.”
“This is the right thing both operationally and internationally,” he stated according to a report by RT, apparently referring to the mounting pressure Israel has been facing recently over its actions in Gaza and alleged violations of humanitarian rights during the operation.
Netanyahu delivered these remarks in a speech following a meeting with the relatives of Israeli hostages, still presumed to be held by Hamas in Gaza. The PM insisted he had been doing his best to rescue them.
“This will take time but it will be done. We will enter Rafah and we will eliminate the Hamas battalions there for one simple reason: There is no victory without entering Rafah and there is no victory without eliminating the Hamas battalions there,” he explained. “Those who say I am not doing everything to return the hostages are wrong and misleading, and those who know the truth and still repeating this lie are causing unnecessary grief to the families of the hostages,” he said.
Israel has been planning to attack Rafah for a few months now. Plans appear to be in place to make that a reality. Netanyahu says that this is about the complete destruction and elimination of Hamas.
Israel launched the operation in Gaza following an incursion by Hamas militants into the southern part of the country last October. During the attack, over 1,200 people were killed, and some 240 were taken into Gaza. The Israeli campaign inflicted heavy damage on the Palestinian enclave, leaving at least 32,000 people dead, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry. –RT
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