IDF chief says ‘time is pressing’ for hostages’ return, warns against ‘attempts to blackmail a ceasefire’

IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi says the military must continue to operate in the Gaza Strip in order to bring about the defeat of Hamas and the release of the hostages the terror group is holding.

“Today we approved plans for the Southern Command to continue fighting and increase military pressure on Hamas. Pressure that will lead to the dismantling of Hamas and the return of the hostages. This pressure, and only it, has so far managed to bring about the return of many hostages,” Halevi says in a press statement in southern Israel.

“Tomorrow we will mark one hundred days since the beginning of the war. A hundred days in which the hostages are still being held in Gaza by the cruel Hamas terrorists. We are working by all means, mostly covert, in order to return them and will continue to do so until we return them all. This task is not yet complete. I know that every minute has a critical meaning and we are not indifferent to it. Time is pressing for the return of the hostages and we do not forget for a moment and do not abandon this elevated goal,” he says.

Halevi says that to “bring about real results, we must continue to operate in the enemy’s territory, not allow attempts to blackmail a ceasefire that apparently will not bring about real results.”

“We have to keep pressing and that is exactly what we are doing,” he says.

“The Hamas leadership is pinning its hopes on a cessation of hostilities and is convinced that this moment is near. For these just goals, we are determined and persistent. These goals are complex to achieve and will take a long time, we said that from the first moment. In order to dismantle Hamas, it is necessary for us to have patience,” Halevi continues.

He says that four divisions are currently fighting in the Gaza Strip. “The forces advance on the ground according to the plan, and adapt the methods of operation to the tasks, the terrain, and the enemy.”

“We have completed the dismantling of Hamas’s military framework in the northern Gaza Strip, and now the forces are embarking on missions to deepen the achievement and preserve it in this area. There are still terrorists there, there is little infrastructure, we will continue to attack, pursue and destroy,” Halevi says on northern Gaza

“We shifted the concentration of efforts to the center and south of the Strip, where we uncovered, including today, above and below ground munition manufacturing plants, including missiles destined for Israel’s home front, an actual military industry. This destruction is very important in order to prevent future force buildup, and it is important to understand that, without the maneuver on the ground, this could not be done. The forces destroy these infrastructures in a very thorough, systematic manner, and at the same time the forces continue to eliminate terrorists from the air, from the sea and in brave close-quarters combat… in a very complex area,” he says.

On reservist forces, Halevi says some have been released home, but says, “We will of course need you in 2024 as well.”

He says they will be re-called up with “sufficient time to prepare, along with proper recognition and compensation, for you and no less importantly for your families.”

On Hezbollah, Halevi says the Lebanese terror group has “chosen to act as a ‘Hamas shield’ under Iran’s directives, and we are exacting an ever-increasing price from it.”

“The security reality in the north is already taking shape these days. We are keeping the Radwan terrorists away from the border and damaging Hezbollah’s capabilities that it has built up over the years. We operate freely in Lebanon’s airspace and strike any threat we detect,” he says.

“The south Lebanon region is a combat zone, and it will remain so, as long as Hezbollah operates from it. Hezbollah may turn the entire country of Lebanon into a combat zone, this will have a heavy price,” Halevi warns.

On the military’s investigations of its failures, Halevi says “True investigation is the lifeblood of an army. We are constantly investigating. That’s how it is in the IDF, it’s our way to learn and improve.”

“Of course, an operational investigation does not replace an external inspection or investigation. We understand that the war will continue for a long time, so we started planning the structure of the investigations,” he says.

He says the IDF has not yet determined a date for when the investigation into the incidents that led to the October 7 onslaught will begin, but that it will happen “as early as possible.”

“We must begin to understand what happened, in order to better protect the residents of the [Gaza border communities] and in order to know how to ensure that this day will not be repeated,” Halevi says.