Gallant: Not all war goals can be achieved with military force, ‘painful compromises’ needed to bring hostages home

With its “precise, lethal and surprising” attack on Iran, Israel sent a clear message, says Defense Minister Yoav Gallant — “Israel’s long arm will reach anyone who tries to harm us.”

“There is no place too far away for us,” says Gallant at the state ceremony for troops who fell in battle since October 7 of last year.

Gallant says that Hamas “has ceased to operate as a military framework,” and that Hezbollah “continues to absorb a series of blows. Its chain of command was eliminated, most of its rocket and missile force was destroyed, and its forces were struck and retreated from the border.”

The terrorist groups no longer represent “an effective tool in Iran’s hands,” he argues.

Still, he stresses that not every goal can be achieved through military force.

“Returning the hostages to their homes demands painful compromises,” says Gallant. “We must do this for the hostages, for their families, for the soldiers who fell for this goal, for the IDF’s legacy, and in the name of the Jewish and national ethos.”

Gallant says that “this is our responsibility.”