The Israeli army ready to launch the ground offensive in the Strip ( ALL ARTICLES ON THE CONFLICT ).
«We will enter Gaza. We will begin an operational and professional mission to destroy Hamas agents, Hamas infrastructure, and we will also keep in mind the images, scenes and casualties from Shabbat two weeks ago,” said Army Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi referring to the attack on Saturday 7 October which rekindled the conflict between the Jewish State and Palestinian Islamist militiamen.
Meanwhile, while the Rafah crossing between Egypt and Gaza was opened (and then closed again) to allow humanitarian aid to pass through, the issue of hostages in the hands of Hamas within the Strip remains central.
His release is being called for in many quarters, but Hamas itself, while opening up to negotiations, has made the end of the Jewish State's raids a condition.
(Unioneonline/lf)