Israel is in the midst of a fight for its existence and preparations are underway for a ground incursion into Gaza, PM Benjamin Netanyahu said and added that “all Hamas members are dead men walking”.
In an address to the nation on Wednesday evening, he stressed that the two main goals of the war were “to eliminate Hamas by destroying its military and governance capabilities, and to do everything possible to get our captives home”.
Seeking national unity, the prime minister said that, “Israel is in the midst of a fight for our existence.” “All Hamas members are dead men walking above and below ground, inside and outside Gaza,” Netanyahu said.
Together with Defence Minister Yoav Gallant, Minister Benny Gantz, the Security Cabinet, the Chief-of-Staff and heads of the security organisations, “we are working round the clock in order to achieve the aims of the war until victory, and doing so without political considerations,” he said.The goals are “saving the nation, achieving victory”, Netanyahu said and added that “we are raining down hellfire on Hamas, and we have already eliminated thousands of terrorists and this is only the beginning”.On speculation about an imminent ground operation in Gaza, the Israeli leader said that it was coming but he would not share when or how.
Netanyahu said that “as the prime minister, I am responsible for securing the future of the state”. “Right now, my job is to lead the state of Israel and the people to a crushing victory over our enemies,” he said.“Now is the time to join the forces for one goal: to surge forward to victory with deep faith in the justice of our cause,” the prime minister said adding, “together we will fight and together we will win.”
