In sharp rebuke of international pressure, Netanyahu insists Israel will achieve 'total victory' and eliminate Hamas
Israeli prime minister lectures the international community: 'Have you so quickly lost your moral compass?'
“We will operate in Rafah. This will take several weeks, and it will happen,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said during his Sunday morning cabinet meeting.
In his opening remarks, Netanyahu said the State of Israel has been fighting on two fronts since Oct. 7: military and diplomatic.
After five months of war in Gaza, he said, “It is no secret that the international pressure is increasing” to call a ceasefire and that “false accusations” are being hurled at the Israeli military, the government and even at himself.
The efforts to undermine his leadership and initiate new elections, will “halt the war and paralyze the country for at least six months.”
Netanyahu stated unequivocally: “No international pressure will stop us from realizing all of the goals of the war: Eliminating Hamas, freeing all of our hostages and ensuring that Gaza never again constitutes a threat to Israel,” he said.
To achieve “total victory” in the war, Netanyahu stated, “We will operate in Rafah,” because it is the only way to eliminate the Hamas threat and “to free all of our hostages.”
The prime minister affirmed that the operational plans for the Rafah incursion have been approved, including "steps to evacuate the civilian population from the combat zones,” which he called “an essential stage ahead of the military action.”
“We will operate in Rafah. This will take several weeks, and it will happen,” he said emphatically.
He reminded the international community that Hamas and its main sponsor, the Iranian regime, pose the greatest danger to the Middle East and the entire world. He rhetorically asked Israel’s “friends” if they had "lost their moral compass" and urged listeners to remember that Israel is fighting a just war.
"We will withstand any pressure and with God's help, we will continue to fight together until total victory," he concluded.
The All Israel News Staff is a team of journalists in Israel.
