News summary
- Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant announced a threephase plan against Hamas.
- The first phase of the plan outlined by the Minister is the current status of the relentless bombings.
- Subsequent phases consist of the neutralization of Hamas and the destruction of the group structure.
Israeli soldiers position themselves in a kibbutz near Gaza Ronaldo Schemidt/AFP October 20, 2023
Israel, considered the occupying power in the Gaza Strip under international law, has the aim of the war to “put an end” to its “responsibilities” in this Palestinian territory and create a “new reality of regional security,” Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said this Friday (20).
Gallant presented a “threephase” plan for the ongoing military operation to the parliamentary foreign affairs and defense committee.
His statements come nearly two weeks after the conflict between Israel and Hamas began following an unprecedented attack by militants from the Palestinian Islamist group that entered Israeli territory and killed more than 1,400 people.
The first stage of the plan outlined by the minister is to take into account the current state of unrelenting bombings throughout the Palestinian enclave in order to then initiate “the neutralization of terrorists and the destruction of Hamas infrastructure.”
The Israeli army responded to the October 7 attack with daily bombings in the Gaza Strip, which has been ruled by Hamas since 2007. According to the Palestinian Ministry of Health, at least 4,137 people were killed, including more than 1,500 children.
The next phase will last “not a day, not a week, not a month,” explained Gallant.
The defense minister said the plan would mark “the end of Israel’s responsibility in the Gaza Strip” after “attacks on pockets of resistance.”
Gallant said the military campaign will usher in a new security reality for the citizens of Israel.
An Israeli Foreign Ministry source who spoke to AFP on condition of anonymity revealed that Israel intends to hand over “the keys” to Egypt, a country that borders this enclave and Israel. However, there is no guarantee that Cairo will accept this situation.
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah alSisi spoke out on Wednesday against a massive “withdrawal” of Palestinians from Gaza to Egypt.
The president explained that “the idea of forcing the population of Gaza to move to Egypt will lead to a similar expulsion” of Palestinians from the West Bank to Jordan, “which will make the establishment of a Palestinian state impossible.”
Israel unilaterally left Gaza in 2005, withdrew its settlers and soldiers and soon imposed a blockade on the Palestinian enclave, which intensified when Hamas came to power in 2007.
The Gaza Strip is a small area of 362 km², home to 2.4 million people and which, according to the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), “continues to be occupied, taking into account the prerogatives exercised by Israel, particularly over its borders.”
Egypt, which also borders the Gaza Strip, controls the Rafah crossing, which has remained completely closed since the start of this latest war escalation, including for humanitarian aid.