Middle East
Israel confirms reports of planned Gaza buffer zone
“They are still firing rockets at Israel and still controlling large parts of the Gaza Strip”: Mark Regev. (archive image) photo
© Tolga Akmen/PA/dpa
Israel is planning a security envelope in the border area. The zone is intended to protect civilians from attacks by Hamas. They want to create “a new reality in Gaza”.
“There will no longer be a situation in which Hamas people are at the border, where they can cross and kill our civilians.” He did not give any further details about the planned security zone. However, it is assumed that this will come at the expense of the Gaza Strip.
Regev said Israel had no interest in reoccupying or permanently ruling the Gaza Strip. At the same time, he said Israel must maintain control over the security of the coastal strip after the war.
He reiterated the goal of ending Hamas’ rule in the Gaza Strip after 16 years and destroying the terrorist organization’s military capabilities. The aim is to “create a new reality in Gaza so that Israeli civilians no longer have to live in constant fear of Hamas, in fear that they will come across the border and slaughter their children.” Regev admitted that Hamas is far from defeated. “They are still firing rockets at Israel and still controlling large parts of the Gaza Strip.” Israel still has “a lot of work to do.”
Macron: Complete destruction of Hamas means ten years of war
French President Emmanuel Macron has questioned Israel’s goal of completely destroying the Islamist Hamas. “The complete annihilation of Hamas, what is that? Does anyone believe that that is possible? If that is the case, the war will last ten years,” Macron said at a press conference on the sidelines of the World Climate Change Conference in Dubai. Israel must specify its war aim, he demanded.
Macron also criticized the continuation of the bombing in the Gaza Strip: “The right fight against terrorism is not systematic and permanent bombing.” He again called for an immediate ceasefire.