IDF will keep killing terrorists until Hamas frees hostages, says chief of staff

‘We won’t stop’ – IDF Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi tells Israeli army officers in Gaza that Israel’s military operations in the Strip are meant to pressure Hamas into freeing Israeli hostages.

By World Israel News Staff

Israel is using its continuing military operation in the Gaza Strip to bring pressure to bear on the Hamas terror organization, with the aim of forcing it to release the remaining 100 captives held in the coastal enclave, the IDF’s top officer said Tuesday.

IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi met with Israeli officers operating in the northern Gaza city of Jabalia on Tuesday.

During his visit, Halevi held a situational assessment with the Southern Command Chief, Major General Yaron Finkelman, the 162nd Division Commander, Brigadier General Itzik Cohen, and a number of other senior IDF officers commanding forces in the Gaza Strip.

Israel, Halevi told the officers, is working to use military force to bring Hamas “to the point where it will understand that it needs to [release] all the hostages.”

“I look at the situation that Hamas is in, they see every day what you are doing to them and they understand that this thing is close to being unbearable.”

“And I am telling you that we will not stop. We will bring them to the point where they will understand that they need to release all the hostages, otherwise the very professional work you are doing will continue and continue, and it means more prisoners and more dead terrorists. And I know you are doing everything possible to minimize casualties on our side.”

The comments came amid mixed signals regarding the status of hostage deal talks in Doha, Qatar.

Various Arabic media outlets have reported this week that the two sides have made progress in the negotiations.

However, senior Hamas spokesman and politburo member Osama Hamdan told a press conference in Algeria Tuesday that the terror group will not compromise on any of its core demands, insisting on the full withdrawal of Israeli forces from the Gaza Strip and a complete end to the war.

Israel has already rejected a complete pullout from Gaza, while Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said Israel will continue fighting the war until it has achieved all of its objectives, including the complete dismantling of the Hamas terror organization.

gaza stripHamasHerzi HaleviIDF