The Israeli prime minister reaffirmed his pledge to “eliminate the remaining terrorist battalions in Rafah” in remarks made on Sunday after meeting with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz.
However, he added that this pledge “goes hand in hand with enabling the civilian population to leave,” without specifying where they would be able to go.
Regarding the intended attack, he declared, “It’s not something we will do while keeping the population locked in place.”
“In actuality, we’ll take the exact opposite action—we’ll let them depart since our concern for minimizing and eliminating civilian casualties has directed us and will help.
Following Hamas’s October 7 onslaught, in which the militant group killed 1,200 people and kidnapped over 250 others, some of whom are still hostages, Israel began its military offensive in Gaza.
