Jerusalem: As Israel intensified its ground assault against Hamas in Gaza, Defence Minister Yoav Gallant on Saturday (local time) called on the people of the Palestinian enclave to find out and kill the terror group's Gaza chief Yahya Sinwar, saying if they did so "it would shorten the war".
He made the comments as the Israeli military used infantry and tanks to thwart Hamas terrorists from escaping to tunnels and forcing them to attack troops, The Times of Israel reported. Gallant said Israeli forces were taking Hamas "batallion after batallion" and stressed they were striking terror targets in Gaza City from the northern and southern parts.
"We will get to (Hamas Gaza chief) Yahya Sinwar and eliminate him. If the residents of Gaza get there ahead of us, that will shorten the war," he said, adding, "Hamas has no limits".
The Israeli minister said there would be no more security threats from Gaza to Israel when the war ends.
"There will be no more Hamas in Gaza and Israel will have absolute freedom to take whatever security action it seeks against anyone who raises their head in Gaza (to threaten it)," he stressed.
As the Israel-Hamas war completes nearly a month, the UN and world powers are yet to arrive at a consensus on how to deal with the conflict, which began on October 7, when Hamas launched a multi-pronged attack on Israel by air, land and sea, killing more than 1,400 people and taking 240 civilians as hostages.
Israel has responded with a brutal counteroffensive, striking Gaza from the air, imposing a blockade and subsequently, widening its ground operations in the densely populated Palestinian enclave. The deadly strikes have claimed nearly 9,500 lives.
On Friday, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrived in Israel for the second time since the war broke out and met Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. While Blinken said the US backed Israel in its offensive against Hamas, his call for a ceasefire was rebuffed by Netanyahu. Earlier, the Israeli leader said a ceasefire in Gaza would mean surrendering to Hamas.
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