Palestinian protests against Hamas rule in the Gaza Strip are proof that Israel’s approach to the terrorist organization is working, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared on Wednesday.
“In recent days, we have seen something we have never seen before—public protests against Hamas rule in Gaza,” the premier said during a 40-signature debate, which the opposition can call once a month and which he is obliged to attend. “This shows that our policy is working.”
On Tuesday, hundreds of Palestinians staged protests in northern Gaza, demanding an end to the ongoing war with the Jewish state and calling for Hamas terrorists to relinquish their control of the coastal enclave.
The rallies, among the most significant against Hamas since the conflict began, reportedly included chants such as “Hamas out,” and protesters carried banners reading “Stop the war” and “We want to live in peace.”
(An Arab opinion poll conducted late last year showed that close to two-thirds of Palestinians in Gaza, Judea and Samaria prefer for Hamas to be part of, or even lead, a Palestinian governing body that would control the Strip after the war.)
“We are determined to achieve all the goals of the war,” stated the prime minister during Wednesday’s Knesset debate. Jerusalem’s war objectives include the destruction of Hamas, the return of the 59 remaining hostages and ensuring that the Gaza Strip will never again pose a threat to Israel.
According to Netanyahu, his coalition has been “doing things that no government in Israeli history has done.
“We eliminated tens of thousands of terrorists and senior murderers. We have destroyed terrorist infrastructure,” he said, noting that the fighting would continue until the last hostage is returned to the Jewish state.
“As long as Hamas persists in refusing to release our hostages, the pressure we apply will become stronger and stronger. This includes capturing territories and other moves I will not elaborate on here,” he vowed.
“We are changing the face of the Middle East. We have dismantled large parts of the axis of evil,” added Netanyahu, in reference to recent Israel Defense Forces’ operations against Iran’s regional terrorist proxies.
Israeli political and military leaders are considering plans for a fresh ground campaign that could include a military occupation of the Strip for months or even longer, according to a recent Washington Post report.
On March 21, Defense Minister Israel Katz first threatened to annex parts of Gaza unless Hamas releases the remaining Israeli hostages.
If Hamas “continues to refuse to release the captives, I instructed the IDF to capture additional areas, evacuate the population and expand the security zone around Gaza for the protection of Israeli communities through a permanent hold of the area,” according to Katz’s statement.
“As long as Hamas continues its refusal, it will lose more and more land to Israel,” the minister from Netanyahu’s ruling Likud Party concluded.
Katz also said the IDF will “intensify” its military campaign “through the expansion of the ground maneuver until the hostages are released and Hamas is defeated.”
U.S. Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff sought to extend the ceasefire in Gaza through the Passover and Ramadan periods, during which time Hamas would release 11 living hostages and half of the bodies it still holds. Israel endorsed Witkoff’s proposed outline; Hamas did not.
In response, the IDF resumed military activity against Hamas on March 18. The renewed Israeli military campaign has been officially named “Operation Strength and Sword.”
