The Israeli army may be on the verge of launching a ground attack on the Gaza Strip nearly two weeks after Hamas terrorists attacked southern Israel.
The country’s Economy Minister Nir Barkat told ABC News Thursday that the Israel Defense Forces have the “green light” to begin the offensive – just in time for the arrival of a large military arsenal from the US.
“We will make every effort to bring our hostages, to bring our hostages [back] live,” he stressed while admitting that the “first and last priority” is to destroy Hamas.
Hamas claims that it is holding some 203 Israeli hostages in a network of tunnels it is building under Gaza – which Barkat vows will be “the world’s biggest graveyard.”
The IDF intends to destroy the terrorist group “even if it takes a year” – with hostages and civilian casualties taking a back seat, Barkat explained.
Barkat’s announcement came shortly after a US defense official told the Wall Street Journal that the US sent nearly a million rounds of 7.62mm ammunition and tens of thousands of 30mm rounds to Israel in anticipation of a ground attack.
Israeli soldiers listen to Defense Minister Yoav Gallant as he meets them in a field near Israel’s border with the Gaza Strip.REUTERS Civil defense forces and local residents carry the body of a Palestinian pulled from the rubble of a house destroyed by Israeli airstrikes in Gaza City. Anadolu via Getty Images
The generous shipment is part of a previously agreed annual military sale from the US to Israel, the outlet explained.
So far this year, Israel has also received tens of thousands of 155mm rounds from the US, the report said.
Also on Thursday, the IDF confirmed that it was in the process of approving final plans for a ground invasion of Gaza – which is a 140.9 square mile strip of land between Israel and the Mediterranean Sea.
A woman looks at a poster depicting missing Israelis who may be among the hostages being held in Gaza.REUTERS
“As part of preparing preparations to resume fighting, the approval of operational plans and the deployment of forces on the ground are underway,” the military statement said.
Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant also warned soldiers to “be prepared” for an imminent invasion.
The ground approach will come after days of Israeli retaliatory airstrikes on Gaza following Hamas’s deadly launch of Operation Al-Aqsa Flood on Oct. 7.
A photo taken from the southern Israeli city of Sderot shows plumes of smoke erupting during Israel’s bombardment of the northern Gaza Strip. AFP via Getty Images
The terror group’s initial attack saw armed militants break through the border fence and infiltrate several communities in southern Israel in the early hours of the morning.
The terrorists are believed to have killed hundreds of people – including children and the elderly – and taken around 200 hostages.
One of the most brutal attacks took place at the Tribe of Nova music festival in the southern Negev, where 260 people were shot dead and several others kidnapped.
Israeli military vehicles are seen during a raid on the Nur Shams refugee camp in the West Bank.AP
The events of October 7 and the following week – which saw the deaths of at least 1,400 Israelis and at least 3,000 Palestinians – have sparked horrific protests around the world.
On Thursday – supposedly before Israel’s massive ground attack – California’s Gavin Newsom shared that he was on his way to Israel, a day after President Joe Biden’s own visit.
As of Thursday afternoon, 32 Americans are believed to have been killed by Hamas, with 11 others still unaccounted for, according to ABC News.
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
