The Israeli military could be about to launch a ground invasion of the Gaza Strip almost two weeks after Hamas terrorists invaded southern Israel.
The country’s Economy Minister Nir Barkat told ABC News on Thursday that the Israel Defense Forces have a “green light” to begin an offensive, just in time for the arrival of heavy military weapons from the United States.
“We will make every effort to bring our hostages, to bring our hostages [back] alive,” he insisted while acknowledging that the “first and last priority” is to destroy Hamas.
Hamas has claimed it is holding some 203 Israeli hostages inside the network of tunnels it built beneath Gaza, which Barkat has promised will become the “world’s largest cemetery.”
The IDF intends to decimate the terrorist group “even if it takes a year,” leaving hostages and civilian victims in the background, Barkat explained.
Barkat’s announcement came shortly after a U.S. defense official told the Wall Street Journal that the United States sent nearly a million 7.62mm rounds and tens of thousands of 30mm rounds to Israel in anticipation of the offensive. land.
Israeli soldiers listen to Defense Minister Yoav Gallant as he meets with them in a field near Israel’s border with the Gaza Strip. REUTERS Civil defense teams and locals carry the body of a Palestinian pulled from the rubble of a house destroyed by an Israeli airstrike in Gaza City. Anadolu via Getty Images
The generous delivery is part of a previously agreed upon annual military sale from the United States to Israel, the outlet explained.
So far this year, Israel has also received tens of thousands of 155mm rounds from the United States, according to the report.
Also on Thursday, the IDF confirmed that it was in the process of approving final plans for a ground invasion of Gaza, which is a 140.9-square-mile parcel of land between Israel and the Mediterranean Sea.
A woman looks at posters showing missing Israeli citizens who are likely among the hostages held in Gaza.REUTERS
“As part of the finalization of preparations for the continuation of fighting, the approval of operational plans and the deployment of forces in the field is currently being carried out,” the army statement read.
Israel’s Defense Minister Yoav Gallant also warned soldiers to “be prepared” for the imminent invasion.
The ground approach will come after several days of Israeli retaliatory airstrikes against Gaza following Hamas’ deadly launch of Operation Al-Aqsa Flood on October 7.
This photograph taken from the southern Israeli town of Sderot shows a plume of smoke rising during the Israeli bombardment of the northern Gaza Strip. AFP via Getty Images
In the terrorist group’s initial attack, armed militants breached the border fence and infiltrated several communities in southern Israel in the early hours of the morning.
The terrorists are believed to have massacred hundreds of people, including children and the elderly, and taken around 200 hostages.
One of the most brutal attacks took place at the Tribe of Nova music festival in the southern Negev, where 260 people were shot dead and several more were kidnapped.
Israeli military vehicles are seen during a raid on the Nur Shams refugee camp in the West Bank.AP
The events of October 7 and the following weeks, in which at least 1,400 Israelis and at least 3,000 Palestinians died, have sparked horrified outcry around the world.
On Thursday, reportedly the eve of Israel’s massive ground offensive, California Governor Gavin Newsom shared that he was on his way to Israel, a day after President Joe BIden’s own visit.
As of Thursday afternoon, Hamas is believed to have killed 32 Americans and 11 others are still missing, according to ABC News.
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Source: vtt.edu.vn