Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz on Friday ordered the military to occupy extra areas within the Gaza Strip after expelling Palestinian residents, as Israel resumed its genocidal conflict on the Palestinian enclave earlier this week.
The Israeli public broadcaster KAN reported Katz ordered additional occupation of Palestinian areas in Gaza below the pretext of defending Israeli troopers and communities close to Gaza.
“The more Hamas insists on refusing to release the hostages, the more land it will lose, which will be annexed to Israel,” KAN quoted Katz as saying.
He added that the Israeli army operation in Gaza “will escalate until all hostages held by Hamas are freed.”
For the previous 16 months, the Hamas group has been engaged in talks with Israel mediated by Qatar, Egypt, and the US. However, these negotiations have but to end result within the launch of all Israeli captives or the top of the continuing conflict, largely as a result of Israel’s repeated violations of agreements and Netanyahu’s refusal to honor earlier commitments.
Early on Friday, the Israeli military launched an assault on the western areas of Beit Lahia in northern Gaza, accompanied by heavy gunfire and artillery shelling.
More than 700 Palestinians have been killed and over 900 injured in Israeli airstrikes on Gaza since Tuesday, shattering a ceasefire and prisoner trade settlement that had held since January.
Nearly 50,000 Palestinians have been killed, largely ladies and youngsters, and over 112,000 injured in Israel’s army onslaught on Gaza since October 2023.
Last November, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for conflict crimes and crimes towards humanity in Gaza.
Israel additionally faces a genocide case on the International Court of Justice for its conflict on the enclave.
Source: www.anews.com.tr