Netanyahu says 100,000 Palestinians left Gaza, Hamas trying to stop them

PM: Ending the Gaza war quickly best way to combat diplomatic price paid by Israel • ‘Finish the war as quickly as possible, finish it with the victory we have defined’

About 100,000 Gazans have left the Strip as the IDF has ramped up its Gaza City incursion, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Sunday at the opening of a cabinet meeting.

“Hamas is trying to do everything to prevent them from leaving and to remain there to serve as a human shield for it. It does not shy away from any means.

“We have recently seen that it shoots women and children in the legs and, if necessary, shoots to kill.”

He also commented on the impending Gaza City invasion.

We are intensifying the operation on the outskirts of and inside Gaza City. We are eliminating Nukhba terrorists who played a significant role in the October 7 massacre, including the accursed terrorist who called his parents and took pride in having personally murdered 10 Israelis. Now we have called the family and informed them that this terrorist has been eliminated. It is a clear message that we will reach them all. I want to thank, on your behalf as well, the ISA and the IDF for doing this important work.”

“We are eliminating terrorist infrastructure and nefarious terrorist high-rises. We have established an additional humanitarian corridor to enable the civilian population in Gaza to leave for a safe place and receive humanitarian assistance there.”

Netanyahu also commented on the publication of a Hamas video showing Israeli hostages Alon Ohel and Guy Gilboa-Dalal, saying, “On Friday, Hamas issued a cruel and reprehensible video of Alon Ohel and Guy Gilboa-Dalal. I must say that I spoke at length with their families on Friday and underscored, on behalf of myself, you and the entire people, our support for them. I must also say that most citizens of Israel, the great majority of the citizens of Israel, are standing steadfast against this psychological terrorism.”

Our effort in Gaza against the last strongholds, in effect, the last important stronghold, Gaza City, is part of our effort to complete the crushing of the stranglehold by the Iranian axis. This axis was intended to destroy the State of Israel, and by dismantling it and striking it, we are removing an existential threat to Israel, the primary threat.

Netanyahu said that he is aware of the price Israel is paying in terms of its public image, arguing that the best way to manage this is “to establish entirely new mechanisms, as we have discussed, and to finish the war as quickly as possible, to finish it with the victory we have defined. That means: eliminating Hamas, returning all the hostages, and ensuring that Gaza does not pose a threat to Israel.”