On April 21, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced that his country will increase military pressure on the Hamas Islamist movement to rescue hostages being held in Gaza.
 |
| Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. (Source: Times of Israel) |
Times of Israel quoted Mr. Netanyahu's statement emphasizing: "In the coming days, we will increase military and political pressure on Hamas because that is the only way to rescue the hostages."
The far-right leader of the Israeli government threatened that the country would launch "painful" blows against Hamas, but did not specify the time and location.
Previously, despite opposition from the international community, the Israeli Prime Minister also affirmed that the country's army would launch a ground attack on Rafah, a city in southern Gaza, where more than 1.5 million Palestinians are hiding.
Countries in the region have warned of the dire consequences of any military operation in the city of Rafah.
Hamas has not yet commented on the Israeli leader's statement.
Meanwhile, TASS reported that on the same day, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz had a phone call with his Israeli counterpart Netanyahu about the regional situation.
According to German government spokesman Steffen Hebestreit, Mr. Scholz called on Prime Minister Netanyahu to make efforts to prevent further escalation and expansion of the conflict in the Middle East.
The German Chancellor also reiterated that the government will continue to coordinate actions with partners in the Group of Seven (G7) and the European Union (EU).
Source
Comment (0)