The Israel Defense Forces has marked Hamas leader in Gaza Yahya Sinwar and the entire leadership of the Hamas terror regime as targets for elimination ahead of an expected Israeli ground offensive, five days after Israel suffered the worst massacre in its history, with some 1,300 people murdered in the south on Oct. 7 by Hamas death squads.
IDF Spokesperson Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari said on Thursday evening, “The findings we are gathering in the territory on this murderous attack shows that the architect is Yahya Sinwar along with all his government and military. Hamas is ISIS—this is not a slogan because we found terrorists with ISIS flags. We also found ISIS booklets. Hamas is ISIS. Hamas is Al-Qaeda.”
Vowing that “we can’t allow Hamas ISIS Al-Qaeda be near any one of our borders,” Hagari added hours after reports of airstrikes on the Syrian airports at Damascus at Aleppo. “The IDF will work across the Middle East to implement Israel’s security interests. This will happen in any arena—anywhere we understand there is a threat to Israel.”
Earlier on Thursday, IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi also marked out Hamas’s leadership as the target, stating: “The massacre by the murderous and animalistic Hamas terrorists of our children, our women, our people, is animalistic, inhumane. The IDF is fighting ruthless terrorists who committed unimaginable acts.”
He said that “this despicable attack was ordered by Yahya Sinwar, and hence [he] and the entire system underneath him are dead men walking. We will attack them; we will strike them and break up their system. The IDF under my command understands the gravity of the situation and the mission on our shoulders.”
Halevi said wide-ranging Israeli Air Force strikes have already killed numerous Hamas terrorists and commanders, destroying terror infrastructure that “supported this terrible and cruel crime.”
“Gaza will not look the same. We are in a situation in which those who led Gaza will be hit and dismantled, and those who stay will understand that such a thing is not to be done to the State of Israel. It will take time,” he stated.
Halevi said that on Saturday morning, the IDF failed to meet its mission of protecting Israel. “We will learn and investigate, but now it’s time to fight,” the chief of staff vowed.
