JERUSALEM (Reuters) – Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant told Israel’s “enemies and friends” on Thursday that the Jewish state would do whatever is necessary to achieve its war aims in the Gaza Strip and in the north of the country, in an apparent response to pressure from the United States over Rafah.
The comments, made during a ceremony honoring Israeli victims of the war, came after US President Joe Biden warned that Washington, Israel’s long-time ally, would suspend arms deliveries if an assault was carried out. launched in the town of Rafah, at the southern tip of the Gaza Strip, considered the last relative refuge for Palestinian civilians.
Nearly half of the 2.3 million Gazans have fled to Rafah, on the border with Egypt, since the start of the total siege of the Gaza Strip launched by Israel last October in response to the Hamas attack.
The Israeli army took control of the Palestinian part of the Rafah crossing earlier this week, through which a large part of the humanitarian aid brought to the Gaza Strip transited, and has since positioned its tanks assaults on the gates of the city – the only one where the IDF has not carried out a ground invasion since the start of its offensive in the Palestinian enclave seven months ago.
In northern Israel on the border with Lebanon, cross-border firefights have intensified with Hezbollah, the powerful Shiite armed movement aligned with Iran, fueling fears of a regional conflagration.
“I turn to the enemies of Israel as well as to our best friends to tell them: the State of Israel cannot be subjugated,” declared Yoav Gallant, according to comments released by his services.
“We are going to be strong, we are going to achieve our goals; we are going to hit Hamas, we are going to hit Hezbollah, and we are going to achieve security,” he added.
While Yoav Gallant is considered one of the war cabinet members most concerned with preserving ties with the United States, his comments highlight the extent of the dispute between the Israeli government and the Biden administration.
Via the social network decision of any international forum, will not deter Israel from defending itself. If Israel is forced to stand alone, it will do so.
(James Mackenzie, with Maytaal Angel; French version Jean Terzian)
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