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Netanyahu, Gallant: ‘Rafah’ and Sinwar Assassination Key Targets Before Deal

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Latrun, Jerusalem (DPA)
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Latrun, Jerusalem (DPA)
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Netanyahu, Gallant: ‘Rafah’ and Sinwar Assassination Key Targets Before Deal

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Latrun, Jerusalem (DPA)
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Latrun, Jerusalem (DPA)

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant issued threats on Monday, just before US Secretary of State Antony Blinken's arrival in Tel Aviv.
They vowed to pursue total victory by assassinating Hamas leaders like Yahya Sinwar and escalating the conflict to Rafah.
Netanyahu insisted they wouldn't end the war until these leaders were eliminated and rejected any prisoner release without conditions.
Netanyahu made these comments during a meeting of the Likud parliamentary bloc this afternoon, which also saw verbal clashes among party officials.
“Our goal is a complete victory over Hamas. We will kill the Hamas leadership, so we must continue to operate in all areas in the Gaza Strip. We must not end the war before then. It will take time — months, not years,” said Netanyahu, as quoted by the Times of Israel.
He noted that 110 of the 253 hostages seized in the Hamas-led massacre attack on October 7 had already been released.
Netanyahu cautioned that this time around “Hamas has demands that we will not agree to. The release formula should be similar to the previous agreement.”
He emphasized that a deal would not be made at “any cost.”
In other news, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said in a statement to the public that Hamas’s leadership, including Yahya Sinwar, is “on the run.”
“Sinwar does not lead the campaign, does not command the forces. He is busy with his personal survival,” claimed Gallant.
The minister further alleged that the IDF has beaten more than half of Hamas’s forces.
In addition, at an organizational level, he said the victory was larger, having taken apart 18 of Hamas's 24 battalions.
Gallant said that three of four Khan Yunis battalions have been taken apart, with the fourth in western Khan Yunis on the verge of falling.

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UN Peacekeepers Say Troops Attacked by Individuals in South Lebanon

A joint force from UNIFIL and the Lebanese army in Naqoura near the Israeli border (Archive - AFP)
A joint force from UNIFIL and the Lebanese army in Naqoura near the Israeli border (Archive - AFP)
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UN Peacekeepers Say Troops Attacked by Individuals in South Lebanon

A joint force from UNIFIL and the Lebanese army in Naqoura near the Israeli border (Archive - AFP)
A joint force from UNIFIL and the Lebanese army in Naqoura near the Israeli border (Archive - AFP)

United Nations peacekeepers said rock-throwing individuals confronted them during a patrol on Tuesday in south Lebanon, calling repeated targeting of their troops "unacceptable".

The UN Interim Forces in Lebanon (UNIFIL), deployed since 1978 to separate Lebanon and Israel, sits on a five-member committee to supervise the ceasefire between Israel and the Iran-backed Hezbollah.

In a statement, UNIFIL said peacekeepers conducting "a planned patrol" coordinated with the Lebanese army were "confronted by a group of individuals in civilian clothing in the vicinity of Hallusiyat al-Tahta, in southern Lebanon".

"The group attempted to obstruct the patrol using aggressive means, including throwing stones at the peacekeepers," the statement read, adding that "one peacekeeper was struck" but no injuries were reported, AFP reported.

The situation was defused when the Lebanese army intervened, allowing the peacekeeping force to continue its patrol.

"It is unacceptable that UNIFIL peacekeepers continue to be targeted," the statement added.

UNIFIL spokesman Andrea Tenenti told AFP a Finnish soldier was slapped during the confrontation.

A witness, who requested anonymity due to the sensitivity of the situation, said an altercation ensued between locals and the Lebanese army, who were searching for the man who slapped the peacekeeper.

One man opposing the army was injured and hospitalized, the witness said.

In a statement, Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam said he "strongly condemns the repeated attacks" on UNIFIL forces and called for the attackers to be stopped and held accountable.

There have been several confrontations between people in south Lebanon, where Hezbollah holds sway, and UN peacekeepers in recent weeks.

Confrontations are typically defused by the Lebanese army and rarely escalate.

In December 2022, an Irish peacekeeper was killed in a shooting at a UN armoured vehicle in the south. Hezbollah surrendered a man accused of the crime, but he was released around a year later.

The November ceasefire agreement, which sought to end over a year of hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah, states that only Lebanese troops and UN peacekeepers may be deployed in the country's south.

Israel is supposed to have fully withdrawn its troops from Lebanon according to the deal, but has remained in five positions it deems strategic and has repeatedly bombed the country.