Gantz Reiterates that Using Military Force against Gaza is Still an Option

Benny Gantz visitsthe fence separating besieged Gaza from Israel. (Photo: via Gantz FB Page)

Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz has reiterated that using military force against the occupied Gaza Strip is still an option, Israeli Public Broadcaster Kan reported today.

What is Next for Palestinian Popular Resistance in Gaza? Speaking to Journalist Wafaa Aludaini in Gaza

Wafaa Aludaini is a witness to many of Gaza’s recent tragedies and never-ending resistance. She experienced the violent Israeli occupation, and the subsequent blockade on the impoverished Strip, starting in 2006. None of the destructive wars that followed the siege impacted her as much as the war of 2014. That war, dubbed by Israel as Operation Protective Edge, destroyed the homes of Wafaa’s parents and parents-in-law as well. Much of Gaza’s infrastructures were also destroyed – thousands of homes, hundreds of factories, many schools, hospitals and houses of worship. The Israeli war has also killed over 2,200 Palestinians and wounded thousands more.War and siege, however, only strengthened Wafaa’s resolve as she became more involved in covering the Gaza news, hoping to reveal long-hidden truths and defy mainstream media perceptions and stereotypes. During the Great March of Return, a popular movement that began on March 30, 2018, Wafaa joined the protesters, reporting on a daily basis on the killing and wounding of unarmed youth who flocked to the fence, separating besieged Gaza from Israel, to demand their basic human rights.

Posted by The Palestine Chronicle on Wednesday, May 27, 2020

“I visited the Southern Command [of the Israeli army] in the Gaza periphery,” Kan reported Gantz as saying, “using military forces is still an option on the table.”

“I want to make clear to everyone in the region that using military forces is not separated from our commitment to regain our prisoners and missing persons in the hands of Hamas,” the Israeli Defense Minister added.

“We want to continue maintaining a high level of security in the south, continue our efforts to regain the [missing] soldiers and maintain the safety of the interests of the people living in that area.”

Earlier this month, Al-Quds Al-Araby reported that Hamas Chief Ismail Haniyeh had revealed that talks between the movement and Israel about a potential prisoner swap had started through the Egyptian mediator. He gave no more details.

“When it comes to war, Gantz is Netanyahu on steroids. He has participated, orchestrated or led many military campaigns, including ones aimed at suppressing any resistance in Gaza, in Lebanon and during the previous popular uprisings,” Palestinian journalist and editor of The Palestine Chronicle Ramzy Baroud wrote in a recent article.

“For Gantz, war is the answer, as indicated by one of his campaign slogans, ‘Only the strong survive’,” Baroud added.

(Palestine Chronicle, MEMO, Social Media)

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