“AThose who think we are late will soon see that we are reaching them all. Extraordinary work is being done here, above and below ground, forces are reaching everywhere and the end result is that there is no safe place in Gaza for terrorists”, warned Yoav Gallant, during a visit to troops stationed in Gaza and cited by The Times Of Israel.
Gallant promised to bring to justice all those involved in the attacks on October 7, 2023, carried out by the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas).
“Either we eliminate them or we put them on trial in Israel. There is no safe place, not here, not outside Gaza, not anywhere else in the Middle East. Let’s put everyone in their place”, stressed the minister.
The Israeli Government announced weeks ago that the next stage of the military operation, launched the day after the Hamas attacks, is a ground intervention in the city of Rafah, near the border with Egypt, where a million people are crowded together with nowhere to go. shelter, after the infrastructure of the Palestinian enclave was almost completely destroyed following five months of bombing.
The international community has warned the Israeli Government of the devastating consequences of such an operation, should it be carried out. However, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his cabinet insist that Rafah is Hamas’ last stronghold.
Gallant’s words came shortly after the Israeli parliament approved an amending budget for 2024, worth 584 million shekels (around 146 million euros), which will allow the army to continue the military offensive in the Gaza Strip, controlled by Hamas.
The measure, approved by 62 votes in favor and 55 against, increases the budget by 70 million shekels (17 million euros) in relation to the accounts approved in May 2023 by the Knesset (parliament). The increase is mainly due to expenses caused by the situation in the Palestinian enclave.
Around 55 million shekels (13.8 million euros) of the additional 70 million will be used to finance the army, while the remaining amount will be used to cover civil sector expenses, according to The Times of Israel newspaper.
The bills were approved after a tense debate session, in which there was internal opposition within the government coalition, mainly from Agriculture Minister Avi Dichter, who is part of Likud, Netanyahu’s party.
Dichter, who was strongly opposed to cuts to the Ministry of Agriculture’s budget, had threatened to veto the measure, but reached an agreement with Netanyahu, with the prime minister committing to “resolve the agricultural crisis” by Easter.
For his part, the leader of the Israeli opposition (Yesh Atid), Yair Lapid, assured that this is the “most sectorial” and “wasteful” budget in the history of the State of Israel, as it does not take into account the Israeli middle class, workers or young people.
On the other hand, Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich stressed that the approved budget has “clear objectives”, such as helping the army to “win the war”, supporting military personnel and allowing the Israeli economy to grow.
The ongoing war between Israel and Hamas was triggered by an unprecedented attack by the Palestinian Islamist group on Israeli soil on October 7, which caused around 1,200 deaths and more than two hundred hostages, according to Israeli authorities.
In retaliation, Israel launched an offensive in the Gaza Strip that has caused more than 31,000 deaths and more than 73,000 injuries, according to Hamas, which has controlled the territory since 2007.
Since then, another 420 people have been killed in the West Bank and East Jerusalem by security forces and attacks by Israeli settlers.
The UN reported today that the number of children killed by bombings in Gaza is greater than the number of children killed in all wars over the last four years.
Read Also: Two suspected Hamas members killed in Israeli attack
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Source: https://www.noticiasaominuto.com/mundo/2521043/operacao-militar-em-rafah-iminente-apos-parlamento-aprovar-orcamento
