Gaza offensive will continue until all Israeli hostages are returned: Defence minister

Israel will continue its operations in Gaza until all Israeli hostages are freed from the enclave, Defence Minister Israel Katz announced Tuesday evening, Anadolu Agency reports.

The Israeli army pounded the Gaza Strip early Tuesday, killing at least 404 people, injuring over 562, and breaking the ceasefire agreement that took effect on Jan. 19.

Images from Gaza showed that the majority of the victims were civilians whose homes were bombed during the night, including women and children.

Speaking during a visit to Tel Nof Airbase in Rehovot, central Israel, as reported by Israeli daily Yedioth Ahronoth, Katz congratulated the air force and army for an “unprecedented preemptive operation” done overnight in Gaza.

“Hamas must understand the rules of the game have changed,” he said. “We won’t stop fighting until all the captives are returned and any threat to southern residents is eliminated,” he added, referring to settlements near Gaza.

Israel estimates that 24 Israelis are being held hostage in Gaza, along with the remains of 35 others. In contrast, more than 9,500 Palestinians remain imprisoned in Israeli jails, enduring torture, deprivation, and medical neglect, which has claimed many lives, according to Palestinian and Israeli human rights reports.

While Katz cited freeing the captives and ending perceived threats from Gaza as objectives, Israeli analysts linked the renewed genocide to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s push to pass a budget and avert his government’s collapse by late March.

By resuming the massacres, Netanyahu secured the return of resigned National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir to the coalition, ensuring his far-right Jewish Power party’s support for the budget.

Katz warned, “If Hamas doesn’t immediately release all the captives, the gates of hell will open upon them, and it will face the full force of the Israeli military by air, sea, and land until it’s completely eliminated.”

Nearly 50,000 Palestinians have been killed, mostly women and children, and over 112,000 others injured in a brutal Israeli military campaign in Gaza since October 2023.

Last November, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Netanyahu and his former Defence Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.

Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war on the enclave.

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