IDF Spokesman: "Hezbollah Endangers Lebanon"

IDF spokesman Daniel Hagari made a statement to the media this evening (Tuesday), in which he referred to today's events during the war in Gaza.

"The bodies of the abductees Eden Zacharia and Ziv Dado were rescued by the IDF from the Gaza Strip to Israeli territory. 27-year-old Eden was kidnapped from the party in Re'im, Ziv was kidnapped while serving in the army. The bodies of the two were sent for a pathological examination. We share in the grief of the families and embrace them at this painful time," he said. "As part of the activity, two Israeli heroes fell in the stubborn fighting with Hamas. We constantly remember that 135 abductees, as well as Hadar, Oron, Hisham and Avera, are still being held by Hamas. We will continue to work to return the abductees home and bring the murdered to proper burial."

He also noted that "the war with the centers of gravity of Hamas continues, above and below the ground. As you can see in the documents, it is a complex fight, they locate the terrorists in the houses, enter and kill them. Our fighters encounter the terrorists, enter into face-to-face battles. This is what we will continue to do in order to defeat Hamas. Every encounter is professional and ends with heroism. We will continue to conduct ourselves all over the area."

Hagari went on to update that "in the north, more than 100,000 residents of southern Lebanon have evacuated to the north. We continue to attack terrorist targets of Hezbollah in view of the continued shooting towards the north." According to him, "Hezbollah continues to operate from the villages and territories and endangers the land of Lebanon - this is an act of terrorism. We will continue to respond to this kind of terrorism by Hezbollah or other terrorist organizations in a determined and severe manner. In every incident we will respond."

In summing up his remarks, he referred to the criticisms of the soldiers' families and said that "it has been more than two months that the soldiers have been fighting for our homeland. I want to thank their families who are taking care at home - you are the source of strength for all of us. We know that these are not easy days for the families, and we will do everything to bring them home as soon as possible. The battles are fought with determination, and we owe a great debt to our fighters."