Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz convened a meeting on Thursday night to discuss ongoing efforts by the Israel Defense Forces to destroy Hamas’s governing capabilities in Gaza, the Defense Ministry said.
The first meeting of the Cabinet subcommittee, which is expected to deal with proposals for a governing alternative to the Iranian-backed terror organization, included Justice Minister Yariv Levin; Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich; Ze’ev Elkin, a minister in the Finance Ministry; National Missions Minister Orit Strook; Israel Defense Forces Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi and other senior officials, the statement noted.
According to the Defense Ministry, ministers were briefed on actions taken by the military to dismantle Hamas’s “civilian” and governmental capabilities in the Gaza Strip. The attendees were said to have discussed further steps Jerusalem could take to “destroy the terror organization’s governmental control, damage its infrastructure and prevent its ability to continue conducting its military and civilian activities.”
The committee meeting was called just hours after a targeted Air Force strike in Khan Yunis killed Hassam Shahwan, whom the IDF identified as the head of Hamas’s internal “police” force in the southern Strip.
The Israeli government’s stated war goals for Gaza include destroying Hamas as a military and governing force in the Strip and ensuring that it can not threaten the Jewish state again. Returning all hostages taken by Hamas during the terror attacks in southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, is another main objective.
An opinion poll published late last month showed that close to two-thirds of Palestinians in Gaza, Judea and Samaria prefer for Hamas terrorists to be part of, or even lead, a Palestinian governing body that would control the Strip after the current war with Israel concludes.
Meanwhile, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken has insisted that an “effective and revitalized Palestinian Authority” should govern Gaza—a move that Israel rejects because of Ramallah’s overt support for terror.
Jerusalem vehemently rejects Hamas and P.A. rule over the Strip, with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu favoring a transfer of control to local bodies not considered hostile to the Jewish state.
Netanyahu said during an interview that aired on May 9 that Israel is seeking to establish a rule “by Gazans who are not committed to our destruction, possibly with the aid of the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia and other countries that I think want to see stability and peace.”
