Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant said the Israeli army would be prepared to make compromises in the event of an agreement on the release of hostages during the offensive in Rafah.
“But if this option is cancelled, we will continue and deepen the operation,” Gallant said, according to his office on Tuesday evening. He said that applied to the whole of the Gaza Strip and that the military pressure would lead to the destruction of Hamas.
On Monday, Gallant ordered the army to advance to Rafah and take over the border crossing. Israel’s military took over checks of the border crossing on the Palestinian side. “This operation will continue until we have eliminated Hamas in the Rafah area and throughout the Gaza Strip or until the first hostage returns,” Gallant said.
Israel and the Palestinian Islamist organization Hamas are currently indirectly negotiating a ceasefire in the Gaza war and the release of hostages in return for Palestinian prisoners. “We are prepared to make compromises in order to get hostages back,” said Gallant.