At a ceremony commemorating the 33rd yahrtzeit of Menachem Begin, Defense Minister Yisroel Katz delivered a stark warning to Hamas on Monday evening.
“In recent days, we have brought for burial Israel, with a painful heart, eight additional martyrs who were murdered by the terrorists in Gaza,” Katz stated, expressing deep sorrow over the recent losses.
He went on to explain that “the ceasefire agreement with the Hamas murderers, and the heavy prices that Israel has paid – and is prepared to pay in the future – were intended to bring about the rapid release of all living Israeli hostages and to bring for burial in Israel all the hostages who are no longer among the living. This is our moral duty and this is our supreme goal. These days we are working to bring about the realization of this goal.”
The minister emphasized that despite Hamas repeatedly violating terms and rejecting the framework put forth by President Trump’s Middle East envoy, Steve Witkoff, Israel had chosen to comply with mediators’ appeals for additional time. “Despite the repeated violations by the Hamas terrorist organization and its refusal of the outline proposed by President Trump’s special envoy for the Middle East, [Steve] Witkoff, we have responded to the mediators’ request to allow a few more days of negotiations – and in the meantime, we have stopped humanitarian aid to Gaza,” he said.
Katz then issued a chilling ultimatum. “Make no mistake, Hamas – this is just the beginning. If Hamas does not release the hostages soon – the gates of Gaza will be closed and the gates of hell will open.”
He made it clear that if the captives were not freed promptly, Israel would escalate its military actions. “We will return to fighting, and they will meet the IDF with strength and in ways they have never known – until complete victory. We will never allow Hamas to rule Gaza. This fighting will end with two clear achievements: the release of all our hostages and the crushing of Hamas rule in Gaza,” he said.
{Matzav.com}