As in the last weeks of the fighting, the yeshiva was held in the Kirya in Tel Aviv.
At the beginning of the meeting, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that Operation Protective Edge was continuing, and that "we have never declared its end at any stage and it will continue until its purpose is achieved, it will take time." The Prime Minister was responding, in effect, to the growing criticism from the right that the war had stopped before achieving its goals, while the shooting continued to trickle down to the settlements around Gaza, including Ashkelon.
According to Netanyahu, "Israel will not negotiate under fire and will act in every way to change reality for the sake of peace for all its citizens. We will stand together in unity and determination until we complete the task.".
Defense Minister Moshe Bogy Ya'alon also joined in: "If Hamas thinks it will exhaust us - it is wrong. We will not negotiate under fire. I understand the residents of the south. We will only compromise on a complete cessation of shooting and terror and we will continue until this is achieved. Patience is required. We see the overall picture, political and military. We will not end the operation without restoring peace and security.".
As usual, ministers were interviewed before entering the meeting, and this time it seemed they were competing among themselves to see who would be more right-wing.
Communications Minister Gilad Erdan said: "These are not just a few incidents, but dozens of daily assassination attempts that Hamas or the organizations under its auspices are carrying out. We are approaching the point where we will have to make a decision, even if it means occupying the Strip and toppling Hamas, with all the costs that this entails, there will be no choice. We cannot continue to tolerate the situation for a long time or even a short time.".
Interior Minister Gideon Sa'ar said: "Hamas' military power in Gaza must be broken. It was true before and it is true now. The residents of the Gaza Envelope must be allowed to return safely to their homes.".
Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman did not lag behind them: "We were supposed to go for the defeat of Hamas. Right now we see that its minimum demands are far beyond the maximum that Israel can agree to. This situation cannot continue. What remains is to defeat Hamas, clear the area and leave as quickly as possible.".
Join the Haredim 10 Facebook page >>
Join the X page of Haredim 10 >>
Want more news, videos and stories? Join the Haredim 10 WhatsApp channel >>
