Israel will annex areas of Gaza until hostages are released, states defense minister

Israeli defense minister Israel Katz said that the IDF will be expanding the buffer zone along the Gaza Strip's boundary in Gaza until the 59 hostages being held captive since the October 7, 2023 massacre perpetrated by Hamas and Islamic Jihad along with many Arab civilians.

“The more Hamas persists in its refusal to release the hostages, the more territory it will lose, which will be annexed to Israel,” he stressed.

“I have directed the IDF [military] to expand the maneuvre, take control of more ground and hold it permanently to protect Israeli communities and soldiers.”

“If the Hamas terror organization continues to refuse to release the captives, I instructed the IDF to capture additional areas, evacuate the population and expand the security zone around Gaza for the protection of Israeli communities through a permanent hold of the area,” according to a statement by Katz’s office.

“As long as Hamas continues its refusal, it will lose more and more land to Israel,” he added. “The alternative is total destruction and devastation.” 

Israel will use “all military and civilian pressure” to achieve its goals, including the “implementation of U.S President Donald Trump’s voluntary migration plan for Gaza residents,” concluded Katz.

The warning comes after the IDF on Thursday began conducting ground operations to dismantle terror infrastructure in southern Gaza’s Rafah. Simultaneously, troops continued ground activity in the northern and central Strip, as the Israeli Air Force struck terrorists and their assets across the enclave.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said the military was acting after the Hamassholes  rebuffed several offers by U.S. Middle East envoy Steven Witkoff to extend the first phase of the Gaza truce through Ramadan and Passover.

Netanyahu said on Tuesday that Hamas has “already felt our strength” since the military returned to fighting, warning that future ceasefire negotiations with the terror group “will only take place under fire.”

On Wednesday, Katz warned Gazans of “total destruction.”

“If all the Israeli hostages are not released and Hamas is not removed from Gaza, Israel will act with forces you have never encountered before,” Katz said.

It's time for Hamas to pay for their crimes.

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