Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said it was not yet clear whether Hamas military chief Mohammed Deif and another senior commander were killed in an Israeli strike in Gaza on Saturday (13). However, the premier vowed to pursue Israel’s war aims to the end.
“In any case, we will reach out to the entire Hamas leadership,” Netanyahu said in a televised news conference.
The Israeli leader added that the chances of a deal to return Israeli hostages would increase as military pressure on Hamas increased.
The brief news conference was called after the Israeli military said it had conducted a strike targeting Deif and senior Hamas commander Rafa Salama in the town of Khan Younis.
Netanyahu was speaking as protesters in Tel Aviv demanded more action to recover Israeli and foreign hostages from Gaza. He said military pressure on Hamas was the best way to reach an agreement to return hostages captured by the armed group during the Oct. 7 attack.
The prime minister said he would not compromise on Israel’s basic demands for a deal.
“I have not deviated one iota from the framework that President Biden has put forward,” he said.
“But I will also not allow Hamas to move an inch,” he added.
Attack leaves at least 90 dead in Gaza
Earlier this Saturday (13), the conflict between Israel and Hamas took on new contours after an Israeli attack in the Al-Mawasi area, in Gaza, which resulted in dozens of deaths. According to the Gaza Health Ministry, controlled by Hamas, at least 90 people lost their lives and almost 300 were injured in the region.
The strikes hit an area in the designated humanitarian zone of Al Mawasi, in the biggest loss of life in weeks, the ministry said.
An Israeli security official told CNN, that Deif – the leader of Hamas’ Qassam Brigades – was targeted in the airstrike.
The Israeli military said the strike hit a military compound but said it could not confirm the number of casualties.
See the scene of destruction after the attack:
Source: CNN Brasil
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