In an interview, an Israeli army spokesman called for a political vision for the future of the Gaza Strip. “Hamas is an idea, it is a party. It is rooted in the hearts of the people. Anyone who thinks we can eliminate Hamas is mistaken,” army spokesman Daniel Hagari told Israeli broadcaster Channel 13 on Wednesday evening.
“Hamas is an ideology, we cannot eliminate an ideology,” he continued. “To say that we will make Hamas disappear is to pull the wool over people’s eyes.”
An alternative to Hamas must be found at the political level to replace it in the Gaza Strip, Hagari demanded in the interview. Otherwise, the Islamist terrorist organization will continue to exist, he warned. Talking about the destruction of Hamas is misleading the public.
With his statements, he also raised doubts about one of the government’s declared war aims. “The political cabinet led by Prime Minister Netanyahu and the security cabinet have set the destruction of Hamas’ military and governmental capabilities as one of the aims of the war,” said Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office in response to Hagari’s comments. The Israeli army is “naturally committed” to this aim.
The military stressed in a statement on the online service Telegram that Hagari’s comments referred to the “ideology” of Hamas.
Netanyahu has not yet presented a plan for the administration and reconstruction of the Gaza Strip after the war ends – probably in order not to offend his ultra-right coalition partners, who are pursuing goals such as the highly controversial construction of Israeli settlements in the Gaza Strip.
But Netanyahu’s political survival depends on them. Recently, there have been increasing complaints from the army about a lack of political strategy for the post-war period. Former general Benny Gantz recently left the war cabinet because the government had not developed a plan for a post-war order in the Gaza Strip.
Military spokesman Hagari further warned in the interview that it would not be possible to free all the hostages held in the Gaza Strip through army operations. Efforts have been underway for months through indirect negotiations to persuade Israel to agree to a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip and Hamas to release Israeli hostages.
Already on Tuesday, Netanyahu said that US President Joe Biden was holding back weapons in the war against Hamas while Israel was “fighting for its life”. The White House rejected this accusation.
In an English-language video on Tuesday, the head of government said he had told US Secretary of State Antony Blinken during his visit to Israel last week that he appreciated Washington’s support, but said it was “unimaginable” that weapons or ammunition had been withheld in recent months.
That video angered the White House and prompted the Biden administration to cancel a meeting with Israeli diplomats about Iran scheduled for Thursday, Axios reported, citing two U.S. officials. U.S. diplomat Amos Hochstein reportedly conveyed the administration’s frustration in a direct meeting with Netanyahu.
US officials did not immediately respond to questions about the meeting. The White House had previously denied that any more weapons were being held back beyond an earlier decision to hold back the delivery of some bombs. “We really don’t know what he’s talking about,” press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters, “we just don’t know.”
Meanwhile, the mayor of Rafah, Ahmed al-Sufi, has accused Israel of widespread devastation in the city in the south of the Gaza Strip. More than 70 percent of the infrastructure and important facilities in Rafah were destroyed by Israeli shelling, Al-Sufi said on Wednesday. He did not initially respond to inquiries from the AP news agency about these figures. They could not be independently confirmed.
