Gaza Strip’s DEIR AL-BALAH (AP) — Israel’s war on Hamas in Gaza will last for “many more months,” according to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Saturday, defying repeated pleas by the international community for a cease-fire in response to the growing number of civilian casualties, famine, and mass evictions in the besieged region.
Netanyahu expressed gratitude to the Biden administration for its ongoing support, which included thwarting a UN Security Council resolution calling for an instant cease-fire and approving a second emergency arms sale this month. The Biden administration supports Israel’s claim that halting the battle now would mean victory for Hamas, but it also encouraged Israel to take further action to protect Palestinian civilians.
Israeli jets launched more attacks on Saturday while ground forces advanced farther into the southern city of Khan Younis, hitting the urban refugee camps of Nuseirat and Bureij in the middle of the region.
More than 21,600 Palestinians have died as a result of Israel’s historic air and ground offensive since the fatal Hamas attack on southern Israel on October 7, according to a statement released on Saturday by the Gaza Health Ministry. The government said that 165 Palestinians had died on the previous day, without making a distinction between combatants and civilian dead. It has been reported that women and children make up over 70% of those slain.
The U.S. State Department announced on Friday that Secretary of State Antony Blinken informed Congress that he had authorized a $147.5 million purchase of primers, charges, and fuses, among other necessary equipment for Israel’s previously purchased 155 millimeter rounds.
This was the second time this month that the Biden administration had approved an emergency arms sale to Israel without consulting Congress. On December 9, Blinken made a similar choice, approving the transfer of around 14,000 rounds of tank ammunition valued at over $100 million to Israel.
Both actions have been taken while Congress continues to block President Joe Biden’s proposal for a roughly $106 billion aid package for Israel, Ukraine, and other national security requirements. Legislators on the Democratic side have mentioned holding up the planned $14.3 billion in US aid to its friend in the Middle East unless Netanyahu’s administration takes decisive action to lessen civilian losses in Gaza amid the conflict with Hamas.
Although they stated they weren’t setting a timeframe, U.S. officials have urged Israel to begin transitioning from high-intensity combat to more focused operations. According to Netanyahu, Israel needs more time.
“The war will continue for many more months, as the chief of staff stated this week,” he declared during a live news conference on Saturday. “I have a clear policy. We’ll keep fighting until we’ve accomplished every goal set forth in the conflict, chief among them being the destruction of Hamas and the liberation of all hostages.
After terrorists took over 240 hostages in the Oct. 7 attack, which also claimed the lives of almost 1,200 people, the majority of whom were civilians, more than 120 hostages are still held captive in Gaza.
Families of the hostages and those who stand with them have staged massive demonstrations every weekend, calling on the government to put the release of the captives ahead of other war goals.
One of the intermediaries between Israel and Hamas, Egypt, has put out a multiphase plan that would begin with the exchange of prisoners for hostages and a short-term cease-fire, similar to what happened during a week-long truce in November.
Before discussing the release of hostages, Hamas insists that the fighting must end. Senior Hamas figure in Beirut, Osama Hamdan, reaffirmed that stance on Saturday, although he also informed The Associated Press that “we have not given any final answer so far” to the Egyptian proposal.
When questioned on Saturday about rumors of potential progress toward an agreement, Netanyahu stated, “We see a possibility, maybe, for movement,” but he was careful not to create “exaggerated expectations.”