Defense Minister confirms: Senior Hamas official captured during operation in Gaza
Defense Minister Israel Katz, visiting Nativ HaAsara, announced the arrest of a senior Hamas terrorist. He emphasized that Israel's policy is to proactively pursue terrorists and dismantle their infrastructure, warning that any rocket fire from Gaza will be met with a decisive and harsh response.
Defense Minister Israel Katz in Nativ HaAsara stated:
"A short while ago, a senior Hamas terrorist was arrested. This is our policy: we do not wait for threats, but pursue Hamas terrorists, neutralize them, and destroy their terror infrastructure. The response to any launch from Gaza will be powerful and clear. The test will not be in their launches, but in our response — and it will be harsh."
"I am here in the settlement of Nativ HaAsara, together with the head of the council and the settlement secretariat, on the day the school year begins. Even as we are here, the activity of our forces in Gaza continues constantly.
We have built a strong and unprecedented security zone in Gaza to protect the residents and the soldiers of the IDF. Nearly 70% of the Strip's area is destroyed, without residents, without tunnels, and without houses — and the IDF controls the territory.
We are not moving from Gaza until the demilitarization of the Strip, the disarmament of Hamas, and the destruction of all terror tunnels. Even after that, the IDF will remain in Gaza on defensive lines to ensure the security of the Western Negev settlements.
Any attempt to bypass the security zone through aerial launches will be met with a harsh response. For every hair on the head of an Israeli child that falls in the Gaza envelope settlements, we will take down the heads of the Hamas leaders in Gaza.
As the Prime Minister and I have instructed the IDF: the law for a balloon is the same as for a kite, and the law for a kite is the same as for a drone — with or without explosives. The response to any launch from Gaza will be powerful and clear: neutralizing those responsible for organizing and executing the launch, and evacuating any neighborhood from which launches are carried out in order to remove the threat and deal with the terror infrastructure on the spot.
The test will not be in their launches, but in our response. And it will be harsh. We are leading a policy of security at any cost in all sectors and on all borders — and the cost will be entirely at the enemy's expense."
