According to Israel, the terrorist organization Hamas has lost control of the northern part of the Gaza Strip. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Saturday night that Hamas fighters “no longer have a safe place to hide.” The military had also previously announced that Hamas no longer controlled the northern Palestinian coastal strip.
Netanyahu said everyone from Hamas leader Yahya al-Sinwar “to the last terrorist” was doomed to die. The army has killed thousands of terrorists, including “commanders who led the terrible October 7 massacre.”
There will be no ceasefire without the hostages being returned, Netanyahu reiterated. As for diplomatic efforts to secure their release, he said families will be informed as soon as there is something concrete. Until then, it’s best to keep quiet.
Netanyahu reiterated that Israel wanted to maintain security control in the Gaza Strip after defeating Hamas. The coastal strip must be demilitarized so that it cannot continue to pose a threat to Israel. The army will control Gaza as long as necessary, Netanyahu said.
The Israeli prime minister is under enormous pressure domestically because many of his compatriots consider him primarily responsible for the devastating Hamas terrorist attack on October 7. Demonstrations calling for the release of 239 hostages held in the Gaza Strip took place in several Israeli cities on Saturday night.
In the coastal metropolis of Tel Aviv, protesters gathered in front of the art museum in the city center. They held up signs that said, among other things: “Israelis for a ceasefire”, “There are no winners in war” and “There is no military solution”.
Noam Peri, whose father was kidnapped by Islamic Hamas terrorists on October 7, said, according to the newspaper Haaretz: “We can no longer bring back the many murdered people, the friends I grew up with. But the hostages live and we must not give up until they come back.”
There were also demonstrations in other cities such as Jerusalem, Caesarea, Beersheva, Haifa and Eilat. The victims of the October 7th massacre were also remembered. According to media reports, protesters in Haifa demanded the resignation of Netanyahu and his government.