Against the backdrop of talk of reducing ground maneuvers, during a tour by the Minister of Defense (Monday) of an artillery battery, Gallant clarified to the fighters that "as long as Hamas exists as a military or governmental framework - we have no moral right to stop."
Gallant held a situational assessment of the operational efforts in the advance of the forces in the Khan Yunis region. In a conversation with the fighters, the minister stated that "we will not stop until we complete our mission - to dismantle the Hamas organization and return the abductees home."
Later in his speech, he referred to the underground fighting and the achievements reached by the security forces in an operation that is currently under secrecy. "In the south of the Gaza Strip we are concentrating our efforts in the underground space. I was now at the headquarters of Division 98, which you assist as well, the results are extraordinary," said Gallant.
According to the minister, "There is an operation above ground with brigade forces that reach many places, wearing down terrorists, exacting a price from them. There is an operation below the ground which is very significant, I do not want to expand on it, very impressive things that the Israel Defense Forces together with the Shin Bet carry out."
"People won't want to live in a place where they don't feel safe"
Gallant noted that the fighting in Gaza will continue. "We have no moral right to stop, as long as we don't guarantee that something like this will never happen again. And so you are fighting the most just war there is, the most important there is. This is a war to ensure our existence in this country, because what happens here immediately affects what happens in Jerusalem or Tel Aviv or Haifa and anywhere else."
At the end of his words, he also sent a threatening message to Hezbollah, "People will not want to live in a place where they do not feel safe. And as long as Hamas exists as a military or governmental framework - we have no security and our enemies from the north see it as well. They understand very well that what you do in Gaza, you can do in Beirut. Therefore, for those who ask how the situation is stabilized, that is part of the matter."