He
told Israeli citizens that the ongoing ground operation is the second
phase of the war against Hamas, which he said would see Israeli 'good'
triumph over 'evil'.
The IDF is
exhausting every option to bring hostages home to their loved ones,
Netanyahu added, saying he today met with families of those thought to
be trapped in Gaza and that his 'heart is broken'.
'The
war inside the Gaza Strip will be long and difficult,' Mr Netanyahu
said, adding that having troops on the ground is 'only the beginning'.
'This is the second stage of the war, whose objectives are clear: To
destroy the military and governmental capabilities of Hamas and bring
the hostages home.
'We've always said never again. Never again is now.'
Moments
after Netanyahu addressed the nation, terrified Israelis in Tel Aviv
were seen scrambling for cover as rocket sirens rang out across the
city.
Mr Netanyahu added: 'Israel is fighting not only its own war but a war for the whole of humanity, a fight against barbarism.'
He also hit out at other Middle Eastern leaders and protesters around the world who have accused Israel of war crimes, saying this claim is 'hypocritical' after more than 1,400 people were killed in Hamas' assault on October 7.
The
Israeli PM called upon those still in northern Gaza to head south,
reiterating claims that Hamas uses hospitals as their bases and exploit
Palestinian citizens as human shields.
Speaking
about meeting the families of hostages held in Gaza, Mr Netanyahu said
he felt 'helpless', but said he assured them they are not treating the
recovery of their loved ones as a 'side mission', rather as an intrinsic
part of the conflict.
Up to 229
people are currently being held as hostages in Gaza by Hamas. Earlier on
Saturday it was reported Hamas leadership had claimed it was ready to
release them - but demanded the release of all Hamas prisoners in
return.
The PM continued: 'There are
moments in which a nation faces two options: to exist or to cease. And
right now this is the kind of test we're facing and I have no doubt how
it will end. We will come out triumphant. We will triumph.
'In
the first weeks of the war there were massive airstrikes against the
enemy and increased force over the past few days in order to help our
enter from the ground in the safest manner.
Moments after Netanyahu addressed
the nation, terrified Israelis in Tel Aviv were seen scrambling for
cover as rocket sirens rang out across the city
Israelis take cover in an underground car tunnel as a siren warns of incoming rockets fired from the Gaza Strip
Palestinians search for bodies and survivors among the rubble of a destroyed building
A picture taken from Israel's southern city of Sderot shows rockets fired from Gaza towards Israel on October 28
Israel has stepped up its bombing campaign as it enters the 'second phase' of the conflict
Civil defense teams and civilians conduct search and rescue operations
and debris removal work at the heavily damaged buildings after Israeli
attacks at Nuseirat Refugee Camp
Earlier on Saturday, Israeli
Defence Minister Yoav Gallant said the war had 'entered a new phase'
with the intense overnight bombing campaign
Israeli air strikes destroyed hundreds of buildings in the Gaza Strip overnight
People gather at the scene where a rocket fired from Gaza hit in the town of Kiryat Ono in Israel on Saturday
Journalists reporting from Gaza on Saturday described the ongoing situation as 'chaos'
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin
Netanyahu (L), Defence Minister Yoav Gallant (C) and Cabinet Minister
Benny Gantz hold a press conference
A photo taken from Sderot, Israel on the Gazan border shows flames rising after Israeli attacks on Gaza
'We
have eliminated countless murderers... and we've eradicated the
infrastructure of terrorism - and it is only the beginning of the road.
Our fight inside Gaza strip will be long and difficult. We are prepared
for that.
'This is Israel's second war of
independence. We will fight for the protection of our home land and we
will fight on the ground and in the air and in the sea. We will
eliminate the enemy above the ground and beneath the ground.
'We
will fight and we will win and this will be the triumph of good over
evil, light over darkness, life over death, And in this war stand
together firmly, united more than ever, certain of our just way.
'This is mission of our lives, the mission of my life.'
Speaking
after the Prime Minister, the Israeli Defence Minister said the IDF is
inflicting 'heavy blows' upon Hamas but stressed the state has no desire
to 'expand'.
Earlier on Saturday Israeli
ground forces were operating in the northern Gaza Strip the army said,
more than 24 hours after entering the Palestinian territory three weeks
into war with Hamas.
'Since early
Friday evening, combined combat forces of armour, combat engineers and
infantry have been operating on the ground in the northern Gaza Strip,'
an army statement said.
Israeli forces
have made several smaller-scale ground incursions inside Gaza, but the
current one has been their longest presence in the territory since
violence erupted with a deadly Hamas assault on October 7.
Earlier
on Saturday, Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant said the war had
'entered a new phase' with the intense overnight bombing campaign.
'Last
night the ground in Gaza shook. We attacked above ground and below
ground,' Gallant said in a video statement, alluding to the network of
military tunnels Hamas has built under Gaza.
Israel
carried out aerial bombardments of northern Gaza overnight Friday into
Saturday, illuminating the sky with explosions and fire
Women walk through devastation in
Rafah, southern Gaza, on Saturday; Palestinian health authorities say
some 7,700 people have died in Israel's relentless retaliatory strikes
Huge plumes of smoke rise from the site of an Israeli attack on Gaza on Saturday morning
The
Israel Defense Forces (IDF) has tweeted images of what it says are
ground forces, including armoured vehicles, moving into Gaza
'The instructions to the forces are clear: the action will continue until further notice.'
War
cabinet minister Benny Gantz said Israel would listen to its friends
and allies, but would ultimately act to protect its own interests and on
its own timescale.
Journalists on the
ground in Gaza have reported bombing of an intensity unlike anything
seen before, sparking international humanitarian concerns for innocent
civilians.
The Hamas-run Palestinian
Health authority claims that more than 7,700 people have been killed by
Israeli offensives, and as tanks rolled into Gaza last night all
internet and mobile signal was cut, leaving families and charities in
the dark as to the conditions on the ground.
Very
little aid is getting through to the 2.3 million people trapped in the
besieged Gaza, with Egypt earlier accusing Israel of inflicting
'logistical difficulties'.
Egypt's
Foreign Ministry said on Saturday 'Israeli obstacles' including truck
inspection procedures were impeding the prompt delivery of aid to the
Gaza Strip through the Rafah crossing between Egypt and the Palestinian
enclave.
'The trucks must be inspected
at the Israeli Nitzana crossing before they head to the Rafah crossing
on a journey that takes a distance of 100 km (62 miles) before they
actually enter the Rafah crossing, which causes obstacles that
significantly delay the arrival of aid,' a ministry spokesperson said in
a statement.
The Rafah crossing, which
is controlled by Egypt and does not border Israel, has become the main
point of aid delivery since Israel imposed a siege on Gaza in
retaliation for an attack by Hamas militants from the coastal strip on
Oct. 7.
On Saturday hundreds of
thousands of people all around the world took to the streets to protest
against the continued bombardment of the Gaza Strip.
Earlier
Israel released images of ground troops moving into Gaza as it ramped
up its rhetoric ahead of tonight's press conference.
Very little aid is getting through to the 2.3 million people trapped in the besieged Gaza
Military vehicles manoeuvre on the border with Gaza on Saturday
A Palestinian Health Ministry
spokesperson told reporters that the disruption of communications has
'totally paralyzed' the health network
A
short 15-second video released by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) shows
armoured vehicles gathered in what the military says is Palestinian
territory on Saturday, as a spokesperson said: 'The forces are still on
the ground and are continuing the war.'
It
came as the IDF said it killed Asem Abu Rakaba, the alleged architect
of Hamas' aerial incursion into the country three weeks ago, and
maritime commander Ratab Abu Tshaiban in some of the raids carried out
on 150 'underground targets' overnight.
Warplanes
struck the targets in north Gaza, including Hamas tunnels, underground
combat spaces and other underground infrastructure, killing others from
the group.
The armed wing of Hamas, the
al-Qassam brigades, said its fighters were battling Israeli troops in
Gaza's northeastern town of Beit Hanoun and in the central area of
Al-Bureij.
'Al-Qassam Brigades and all
Palestinian resistance forces are fully prepared to confront the
aggression with full force and thwart the incursions,' it said.
A
Palestinian Health Ministry spokesperson told reporters that the
disruption of communications has 'totally paralyzed' the health network.
Residents had no way of calling ambulances, and emergency teams were
chasing the sounds of artillery barrages and airstrikes to search for
people in need.
An estimated 1,700
people remain trapped beneath the rubble, according to the health
ministry, which has said it bases its estimates on distress calls it
received.
Some civilians were using
their bare hands to pull injured people from the rubble and loading them
into personal cars or donkey carts to rush them to the hospital.
In
a video posted by local news media, Palestinians were sprinting down a
ravaged street with a wounded man covered in the dust of a building's
collapse while he winced, eyes shut, on a stretcher. 'Ambulance!
Ambulance!' the men shouted as they shoved the stretcher into the back
of a pickup truck and shouted at the driver, 'Go! Go!'
Some
Gaza residents traveled by foot or car to check on relatives and
friends. 'The bombs were everywhere, the building was shaking,' said
Hind al-Khudary, a journalist in central Gaza and one of a few people
with cellphone service. 'We can't reach anyone or contact anyone. I do
not know where my family is.'
Israel
says its strikes target Hamas fighters and infrastructure and that the
militants operate from among civilians, putting them in danger.
The
World Health Organization appealed to 'the humanity in all those who
have the power to do so to end the fighting now' in Gaza.
'There
are more wounded every hour. But ambulances cannot reach them in the
communications blackout. Morgues are full. More than half of the dead
are women and children,' it said in a statement, and it expressed 'grave
concerns' about reported bombardment near hospitals in the northern
half of Gaza.
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