Israeli army pulls all troops from southern Gaza
IDF chief of staff Herzl Halevi vowed that the army would continue its fighting in Gaza, saying 'we are far from stopping'
The Israeli army announced it was pulling all ground forces from southern Gaza on Sunday, leaving just one brigade in place.
The announcement came as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu repeated his claim that Israel is “a step away from victory,” despite Hamas resurfacing in northern Gaza, and four Hamas battalions remaining in Rafah.
Defence Minister Yoav Gallant applauded the “achievements” made by the IDF’s Division 98 and its units as they pulled out of southern Gaza.
“They have eliminated terrorists and destroyed terror targets including warehouses, weapons, headquarters, communication centres and more. Their activities enabled the dismantling of Hamas as a functioning military unit in this area,” Gallant said.
“Our forces are going to prepare for their follow-up missions. We saw examples of such missions in Al Shifa hospital, and (will see) such missions in the Rafah area. We will reach a point when Hamas no longer controls the Gaza Strip and does not function as a military framework that poses a threat to the citizens of the State of Israel,” he added.
IDF chief of staff Herzl Halevi also vowed that the army would continue its fighting in Gaza, saying “we are far from stopping.”
“Senior Hamas officials are still in hiding. We will get to them sooner or later. We are making progress, continuing to kill more terrorists and commanders and destroy more terror infrastructures, including last night. We will not leave Hamas brigades active in any part of the Strip. We have plans and we will act when we decide,” he added.
As speculation mounted over the looming ground offensive in Rafah, which has brought Israel and the U.S. on collision course, Netanyahu repeated that the IDF will enter the southernmost city.
“We are determined to achieve total victory, to return all of our hostages, to complete the elimination of Hamas in the entire Gaza Strip including Rafah and to ensure that Gaza never again constitutes a threat to Israel,” he said.
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