Bennett warned that another violent attack by Hamas on Israel and a subsequent war is only a question of time.
Education Minister Naftali Bennett said Tuesday that another round of fighting with Hamas “is a question of when, not ‘if,’” adding that Israel must aim in the coming conflict to remove the terror group from power once and for all.
Speaking at a memorial service for Ella Abukasis, a 17-year-old girl who died when she was hit by a Kassam rocket from Gaza in 2005 as she shielded her 10-year-old brother from the attack, Bennett said that Israelis must be free to walk the streets without fear of missile attacks.
“This time we must score a definitive victory and not be satisfied with a tie that leaves Hamas able to rearm and plan the next round at its leisure,” Bennett stated. “Only by completely defeating the enemy can we put an end to the neverending merry-go-round of attacks and ceasefires.”
Earlier Tuesday, Housing Minister Yoav Gallant, a decorated former general, said there was a high probability of another round of fighting with Hamas in the spring or early summer.
The Hamas terror group has recovered its operational power to the levels it had reached prior to Operation Protective Edge in the summer of 2014, a senior defense official warned earlier this month.
The IDF decimated Hamas’ forces during the counter-terror operation. Israel exposed and destroyed many terror tunnels, but Hamas has since been working diligently to rebuild its military capabilities, often at the expense of the residents of Gaza.
Separately, during a tour of Israeli communities near the border with Gaza Strip at the beginning of the month, Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman warned about Hamas’ threat.
“Hamas and the rest of the groups in Gaza have not abandoned their desire to destroy Israel and to harm us,” he stated.
By: Andrew Friedman/TPS and United with Israel Staff