Tel Aviv [Israel], December 25 : Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday said Israel is making "every effort" to bring back the hostages held captive by Hamas in the Gaza Strip, adding that this effort requires "military pressure" to succeed. He said Israel is not stopping until victory, The Times of Israel reported.
In his remarks at the Knesset, Netanyahu said, "We aren't stopping and we won't stop until victory because we have no other land and no other path," he says, to boos from the hostages' families."
During a special parliamentary session attended by families of the hostages, the Israeli PM said, "We won't stop fighting," adding that "we need time." "We don't have time," one relative calls out from the Knesset gallery, after which the families chant "Now! Now! Now!," demanding the immediate release of the hostages.
Netanyahu said he reached out to Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin to intervene on the hostages' behalf and that his wife Sara had directly appealed to the Pope, according to The Times of Israel report.
In the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas, troops of the Nahal Brigade raided two schools in Gaza City's Daraj and Tuffah neighbourhoods, CNN reported. The IDF said raids were carried out following intelligence of Hamas operatives hiding at the complexes.
Hamas's Daraj-Tuffah battalion is believed by the IDF to be the last standing battalion in northern Gaza. According to IDF, the troops during the raids encountered and killed several Hamas gunmen. Dozens of explosive devices, assault rifles, and 15 explosive belts were found in the complexes. In one incident, a Hamas terrorist fired a missile from one of the schools at the troops.
Earlier in the day, Benjamin Netanyahu visited the war zone in the Palestinian coastal enclave. He said the war against Hamas in Gaza is far from over, The Times of Israel reported.
At a meeting of the Likud faction meeting in Knesset, he said, "We are not stopping, we are continuing to fight and we are deepening the fighting in the coming days, and this will be a long battle and it is not close to being over. We need patience, unity, and to stick to our mission."
Netanyahu said he visited a reservist brigade in Gaza today. Speaking to Cabinet, Netanyahu said, "Everyone asked me only one thing: that we don't stop and continue on until the end."
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