The Israeli military has achieved all it could in the Gaza Strip, senior U.S. officials said Thursday, writing in the New York Times. Further attacks would only increase the threat to civilians and would not significantly harm Hamas.
Many US officials believe that although the Israeli military has seriously weakened Hamas and caused it more damage than expected, it will never be able to completely eliminate the organization, the New York Times stressed.
The White House announced on Thursday the start of a new round of negotiations on a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip and an exchange of Israeli hostages for Palestinian prisoners. An Israeli delegation is taking part in the talks in Doha, Qatar, but Hamas has rejected the invitation. However, mediators are to consult with its representatives.
USA are pressing both sides to reach an agreement to end the war that has been going on for over 10 months. According to some sources, a ceasefire could also prevent a retaliatory attack Iran on Israelannounced after the elimination of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh by the Jewish state in Tehran.
Israel continues airstrikes on Gaza StripEPA
The death toll in the war on the Palestinian side has exceeded 40,000, the Gaza Strip's health ministry reported on Thursday, not distinguishing between civilians and militants killed. The Israeli army says it has killed or captured about 17,000 terrorists.
Israel will not regain hostages through military action
Hamas is now bled dry and destroyed, many of its leaders have been killed, Israeli forces can move throughout the entire territory of the Gaza Strip, they control its border with Egyptand Hamas would not be able to carry out an attack similar to the one on October 7, 2023, or any other major terrorist attack on Israel at the moment – the sources emphasized to the “NYT”. In the Hamas attack on October 7, which started the war, nearly 1,200 people were killed and 251 kidnapped.
Israel will probably never be able to eliminate all Hamas members, however, as many of them are hidden in an extensive network of tunnels or among the civilian population, and the organization itself still has some limited and scattered forces, the daily added.
He stressed that, according to American officials, Israel is unable to use military action to recover the hostages still held by Hamas and that this can only be done by concluding an agreement.
Main image source: AYAL MARGOLIN/PAP