- PM says surrender of dozens of terrorists in Gaza shows ‘beginning of the end’ for terror group; senior IDF officer says signs that Hamas breaking don’t mean war will end soon
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday called on Hamas terrorists to surrender to Israeli troops, urging them not to sacrifice their lives for the terror group’s chief in Gaza, Yahya Sinwar.
The comments followed remarks by Israel Defense Forces Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi that there were signs that Hamas was collapsing, and as several images and videos circulated over the past week of dozens of men, some of them apparently Hamas operatives, surrendering and being detained by Israeli troops inside Gaza.
“In the past few days, dozens of Hamas terrorists have surrendered before our forces. They put down their weapons and turn themselves over to our brave fighters,” Netanyahu said in a video statement.“It will take more time, the war is still in full force, but this is the beginning of the end of Hamas,” he added. “I say to the terrorists of Hamas: It’s over. Don’t die for Sinwar. Surrender now.”
A senior IDF officer also said Sunday that in recent days the military has identified “signs of Hamas breaking” in the Gaza Strip, as it continued its offensive against the terror group.
“The extent of the destruction and damage creates command and control problems [for Hamas]. There are areas in the Gaza Strip that Hamas no longer controls militarily,” the officer said.
“Despite the achievements, we are not close to the end of the fighting. We continue to operate with great intensity, and work to dismantle entire battalions of Hamas,” he stated, adding that about half of the 24 Hamas battalion commanders have been eliminated in airstrikes and other operations.
Israel launched its military campaign after thousands of Hamas fighters invaded the south of the country on October 7, rampaging through communities and killing some 1,200 people, most of them civilians, and taking another estimated 240 people hostage.
The IDF says it has killed 7,000 Hamas members or allied terrorists as it seeks to destroy the terror group, free the hostages, and ensure such an attack can never occur again. More than 22,000 targets in the Gaza Strip have been struck since the beginning of the war, 3,500 of them since the end of the ceasefire on December it said.
The targets have included Hamas infrastructure, including tunnels, weapons depots, command centers, and rocket launchers, as well as terror operatives.
