Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu, in a series of interviews aired on Sunday with US media outlets, lauded the IDF’s response to the October 7 Hamas attack, asserting that America’s reaction to such an assault would be equally robust, if not more so.
Netanyahu, speaking with Fox News, responded to President Joe Biden’s criticism of Israel’s Gaza campaign, stating, “Look, we were attacked in the worst attack on Jewish people since the Holocaust. That October 7 massacre was equivalent to 29 9/11s in one day and the equivalent of 50,000 Americans slaughtered — burned, maimed, raped, beheaded — and 10,000 Americans taken hostage, including mothers and children.”
He continued, suggesting that the American response would likely match or surpass Israel’s, with many Americans expressing a sentiment of decisive action: “So, what would America’s response be? I would say it would be at least as strong as Israel’s and many Americans tell me, ‘We would have flattened them. We would have turned them into dust.’”
Later in the day, Netanyahu was scheduled to hold a phone conversation with President Biden, with a focus on the hostages held by terrorist groups in Gaza since the October 7 attack, during which thousands of Hamas-led militants crossed the border, resulting in over 1,200 casualties and the capture of over 250 hostages, predominantly civilians.
In response to the onslaught, Israel launched a widespread military campaign in Gaza, aiming to dismantle the terror group responsible. Official figures from local health authorities claim over 28,000 fatalities since the conflict’s onset. The IDF reports over 10,000 operatives killed in Gaza, in addition to around 1,000 terrorists within Israel on October 7.
Biden initially extended staunch support to Israel, demonstrating solidarity with a visit to the country and dispatching two US aircraft carriers to the region to deter involvement from Hezbollah, the Lebanese terrorist organization.
Netanyahu, in interviews aired Sunday, provided his perspective on the civilian casualty ratio, stating, “I think that any civilian loss, any civilian casualty, is a tragedy. And it’s a tragedy that’s been forced upon us by Hamas.”
Addressing the ongoing efforts to secure the release of hostages and topple Hamas, Netanyahu emphasized the compatibility of these objectives and underscored the necessity of sustained military action.
He acknowledged the remaining hostages in Gaza, estimating that “enough to warrant the kind of efforts that we’re doing” are still alive. Netanyahu reiterated the commitment to bringing back all surviving hostages and recovering the bodies of those deceased.
{Matzav.com}