Katz Threatens to Destroy Gaza City if Hamas Does Not Surrender, Netanyahu Evades Regarding the Deal

SadaNews Translation - Israeli Defense Minister, Israel Katz, threatened on Friday to completely destroy the city of Gaza as he did in Rafah and Beit Hanoun if Hamas does not surrender.

Katz stated in a tweet via "X" platform, as translated by SadaNews, "We approved plans yesterday to decisively deal with Hamas in Gaza through significant firepower, evacuating civilians, and starting a ground maneuver. Soon, we will unleash our power on the heads of Hamas killers until they agree to Israel's conditions to end the war, most importantly the release of all hostages and the surrender of their weapons."

He added: "If they do not comply, Gaza, the capital of Hamas, will turn into Rafah and Beit Hanoun, as I have promised it will be."

The Hebrew newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth confirmed in a report published on Friday, as translated by SadaNews, that Israel will repeat some features it adopted in Operation "Gideon's Vehicles 1" in the new operation "Gideon's Vehicles 2," suggesting that Israel will create new axes around the city of Gaza and will work to destroy buildings in the city, especially high-rises, to prevent them from being used by Hamas operatives. This operation will require a long timeline and will be conducted on a large scale, similar to what occurred in Rafah and Khan Younis.

It indicated that the operation will primarily depend on evacuating civilians from the city, estimated to number around one million people.

It noted that the Israeli army will initially work to surround the city from all sides, then slowly advance towards the west of the city where the population resides, which is known to have different construction characteristics due to the presence of tall towers.

The newspaper mentioned that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is still evading regarding Israel's response to the exchange deal, pointing out that Netanyahu is using the "Sword of Gaza Invasion" as a means of pressure on Hamas. However, it is impossible to ignore the fact that once the operation begins, it will be difficult to obtain government approval to withdraw troops from the city.

The newspaper stated, as translated by SadaNews, that Netanyahu is trying to appease his coalition partners by rejecting a partial agreement, while also showing readiness to negotiate to satisfy the families of the captives in Gaza.