Israeli defense minister says no ‘settlement with Palestinian factions in Gaza’

By Said Amouri

JERUSALEM (AA) - Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said Thursday that Tel Aviv will not make “any settlement with the Palestinian factions in Gaza,” pointing out that the war will not stop without “eliminating” Hamas.

"There will be no settlement with those who killed us. We will eliminate them all, even if it takes years," he told reporters. “The Israeli army has begun using new methods to deal with the tunnels and those inside them.”

Gallant asserted that the fight would continue until the captives are returned from the Gaza Strip.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said earlier that a cease-fire in the Gaza Strip is contingent on the release of the hostages.

Israel has launched relentless air and ground attacks on the Gaza Strip since a cross-border attack by the Palestinian resistance group, Hamas, on Oct. 7, during which it took dozens of hostages.

At least 10,569 Palestinians, including 4,324 children and 2,823 women, have been killed. The Israeli death toll, meanwhile, is nearly 1,600, according to official figures.

*Writing by Mahmoud Barakat