Tel Aviv, MINA – Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel will not allow the reconstruction of Gaza to take place unless the territory is fully disarmed, according to Anadolu Agency.
Netanyahu made the remarks late Tuesday during a press conference at his office in West Jerusalem, a day after Israeli authorities announced the recovery of the remains of Master Sgt. Ran Gvili. Gvili was the last of the 251 hostages taken into Gaza during the Oct. 7, 2023 attack carried out by the Palestinian group Hamas and its allies.
The prime minister has long cited security concerns as a reason for not implementing the second phase of US President Donald Trump’s plan for the Gaza Strip. On Monday, the Israeli army recovered Gvili’s remains after examining around 250 bodies in a cemetery in northern Gaza.
“We are now focused on achieving the two remaining objectives together: disarming Hamas and demilitarizing Gaza,” Netanyahu said. “There are only two options, the easy path or the hard path and we will not allow the reconstruction of Gaza before it is disarmed.”
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Addressing the reopening of the Rafah border crossing, Netanyahu stated that Israel agreed to open the crossing only for individuals and in limited numbers. He added that everyone entering or leaving Gaza would be subject to Israeli inspection.
Amid speculation that the United States could launch an attack on Iran, potentially triggering retaliation, Netanyahu warned that Israel would respond forcefully to any Iranian attack.
“If Iran makes a grave mistake and attacks Israel, we will respond with a force it has never seen before,” he said.[]
Mi’raj News Agency (MINA)
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