The remarks by Israel defence minister Israel Katz come a day after PM Netanyahu said he would give a go-ahead to the military to seize Gaza City.
In a massive warning, Israeli defense minister said on Friday that Gaza City could be destroyed if Hamas does not accept Israel’s terms, amid the country preparing for expansion of its offensive in the region.
The remarks by Israel defence minister Israel Katz come a day after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he would give a go-ahead to the military to seize Gaza City.
Israel Katz warned that “all gates of hell will open on the heads of Hamas” the enclave’s largest city could “turn into Rafah and Beit Hanoun,” referring to the areas which have been reduced to rubble in the war.
“The gates of hell will soon open on the heads of Hamas’ murderers and rapists in Gaza — until they agree to Israel’s conditions for ending the war.”
Katz asserted the Israel’s cease-fire demands of the release of all hostages and Hamas’ complete disarmament.
Hamas has said it would release captives in exchange for ending the war, but has rejected dropping arms without the creation of a Palestinian state.
The Israeli war on Gaza began after Palestinian militant outfit Hamas’s October 7, 2023, attack on Israel during which dozens of people were killed and taken as hostages.
In the Hamas attack of October 7, 2023, some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, were killed and 251 were abducted, of whom most have been released in ceasefires or other deals.
The Gaza health ministry, which does not differentiate between militants and civilians, said on Thursday that at least 62,192 Palestinians have been killed since the beginning of the war.
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