Thea Arbar, CNBC Indonesia
Sunday, 12/31/2023 21:45 IWST
Photo: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visits the Gaza Strip, during a temporary ceasefire between Hamas and Israel, in a leaflet obtained by Reuters on November 26, 2023. (Reuters/GPO Video Screenshot)
Jakarta, CNBC Indonesia – Israeli Prime Minister (PM) Benjamin Netanyahu vowed to take back control of the Gaza Strip’s border with Egypt. This decision was made to expand Israel’s mission to neutralize Hamas.
“The war is reaching its peak,” Netanyahu told reporters on Saturday (30/12/2023), discussing the fighting since October 7, as quoted by Reuters.
He said the Philadelphia Corridor buffer zone that runs along Gaza’s border with Egypt should be in Israel’s hands.
“It must be closed,” Netanyahu said. “It is clear that any other arrangement will not guarantee the demilitarization we want,” he said.
Photo: An Israeli tank fires towards Gaza, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas, on the Israel-Gaza border, in southern Israel, December 27, 2023. (REUTERS/AMIR COHEN)
An Israeli tank fires towards Gaza, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas, on the Israel-Gaza border, in southern Israel, December 27, 2023. (REUTERS/Amir Cohen)
Netanyahu himself did not elaborate on his plans, but such a move by Israel is a de facto reversal of the withdrawal of its troops from Gaza in 2005, placing the enclave under exclusive Israeli control after years of being led by Hamas.
Netanyahu’s comments regarding the buffer zone came as Israeli military forces continued to launch attacks on Gaza.
Following the shocking Hamas attack on October 7, Israel launched a massive offensive in Gaza, displacing its nearly 2.3 million residents and killing at least 21,672 Palestinians, with more than 56,000 injured and the fate of thousands of residents unknown.
On the other hand, the incident has sparked fears that the conflict could spread across the region, potentially involving Iran-backed groups in Lebanon, Iraq, Syria and Yemen who have exchanged fire with Israel and its ally the United States (US). ), or targeting merchandise delivery.
Watch the video below:
Israeli PM Affirms There Can Be No Peace Until Hamas is Destroyed
(tfa/wur)
2023-12-31 14:45:00
#Netanyahu #Vows #Control #Gaza #Border #Egypt
