Israeli army spokesman Daniel Hagari has acknowledged that eradicating Hamas from the Gaza Strip is an impossible mission, and that the Islamists will remain there if an alternative to their rule is not found.
“This business of destroying Hamas, making Hamas disappear, is simply deceiving the public,” Hagari said in an interview with Channel 14 news, eight and a half months after the start of the war in the Palestinian enclave.
“Hamas is an idea, Hamas is a party. It is rooted in the hearts of the people; whoever thinks that we can eliminate Hamas is wrong,” he continued.
His words sparked anger in the office of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who in a statement recalled that “one of the objectives of the war (is) the destruction of Hamas’s military and government capabilities.”
“The Israel Defense Forces are of course committed to this,” the statement added, evoking the need for an “absolute victory” repeated many times by Netanyahu throughout this war, in which more than 37,400 Gazans have already died.
The army, in turn, responded to Netanyahu, and in a military statement in Hebrew last night assured that its forces have been working “day and night” since the beginning of the war to achieve these objectives and that they will continue to do so.
“The commanders and their servants are fighting with determination and persistence to destroy Hamas’ military capabilities and governmental and organizational infrastructure in Gaza, a clear military objective,” the spokeswoman said.
“In his remarks, the spokesman (Hagari) referred to the destruction of Hamas as an ideology and an idea, and he said so clearly and explicitly. Any other statement takes things out of context,” the military statement said.
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2024-09-21 22:30:12
