JERUSALEM (VINnews) — The Israel Defense Forces said Sunday that Hamas is deliberately exploiting civilians in Gaza to prolong the war, while Israel presses forward with military operations aimed at dismantling the terror group and rescuing hostages.
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“Hamas has shown the world its true strategy: to exploit its own people and prolong this war. That strategy will not succeed,” said IDF spokesperson Brig. Gen. Effie Defrin in an English video statement.
Defrin described incidents in recent days that he said highlight Hamas’s conduct, including gunmen firing on a United Nations team, blocking a new aid road with stolen UN vehicles, and armed terrorists robbing four UNICEF trucks at gunpoint — depriving nearly 3,000 infants of baby formula. He accused Hamas of violently obstructing civilians from evacuating combat zones, saying, “Hamas doesn’t protect Gazans, they sacrifice them.”
The spokesman also noted the multi-front nature of the conflict. He cited a shooting attack at the Allenby Crossing by a terrorist driving a truck carrying humanitarian aid, the discovery of rockets prepared for launch in Ramallah, ongoing efforts by Hezbollah’s Radwan Force to rearm in Lebanon, and missile and drone attacks launched by Houthis in Yemen. Rockets were also fired again from Gaza toward Israel, he said.
Defrin said Israeli troops have moved deeper into Gaza City to strike Hamas’s “main stronghold,” conducting operations against terrorists both “above and below ground.”
On the humanitarian front, he said Israel continues to keep evacuation corridors open and has enabled the entry of more than 24,000 tents into Gaza. According to the IDF, about 550,000 people have moved south toward an Israeli-designated humanitarian zone, where thousands of tents and supplies are waiting to be collected by international aid groups at Kerem Shalom Crossing.
Defrin stressed that 48 hostages remain captive in Gaza. “Their captivity is an unfinished chapter of this war — and we will not close it until they are home. We have no other choice but to fight for our future,” he said.