Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says that the phase of intense fighting against Hamas is coming to an end but that the war will not end until the terror group no longer controls the Gaza Strip.
Once the intense fighting is over in Gaza, Netanyahu tells Channel 14, this will allow Israel to deploy more forces along the northern front against the Iran-backed Hezbollah in Lebanon.
“The intense phase of the fighting against Hamas is about to end,” Netanyahu says. “It doesn’t mean that the war is about to end, but the war in its intense phase is about to end in Rafah.”
“After the end of the intense phase” in Gaza, he says, Israel will “redeploy some forces to the north… primarily for defensive purposes.”
When asked about post-war scenarios for Gaza, Netanyahu says it is “clear” that Israel will maintain “military control in the foreseeable future.”
“We also want to create a civilian administration, if possible with local Palestinians” and regional backing “to manage humanitarian supply and later on civilian affairs in the Strip”, Netanyahu adds.
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