Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel had “no choice” but would continue to fight in Gaza
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced again on Saturday that Israel had “no choice” but would continue to fight in Gaza and would not end the war before destroying Hamas, freeing hostages and ensuring that the territory would not pose a threat to Israel.
The Prime Minister also repeatedly vowed to ensure Iran never obtained nuclear weapons.
Netanyahu is under pressure not only from hostages and their families of supporters, but also from reserves and retired Israeli soldiers who questioned the continued war after Israel broke the ceasefire last month. In his statement, he claimed that Hamas rejected Israel's latest proposal to release half of the hostages to continue the ceasefire.
The Prime Minister made a speech after the Israeli strike killed more than 90 people within 48 hours, the Gaza Ministry of Health said on Saturday. Israeli forces have been increasing their attacks to force Hamas to release hostages and disarm.
Children and women were 15 people killed overnight, according to hospital staff.
Hospital staff said at least 11 people were killed in the southern city of Khan Younis, some of whom were killed in a tent in the Muwasi area. Israel designated it as a humanitarian zone.
Palestinians were killed in Israeli Army airstrikes at a funeral held on Saturday, April 19, 2025 in Khan Younis, in southern Gaza Strip.
AP Photos/Abdel Kareem Hana
The cradle of the mourner, kissing the dead in the face. A man stroked his child's forehead with his fingers and then closed his handbag.
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“Omar is gone…I hope it's me,” a brother shouted.
According to European hospitals, during a strike in Rafah, including mother and daughter, they were killed.
According to the Al-Awda Hospital, an Israeli air strike was carried out on a group of civilians west of Nuseirat in central Gaza late Saturday.
Israel's army said in a statement that it killed more than 40 militants over the weekend. Additionally, it said a soldier was killed in northern Gaza on Saturday and confirmed that it was the first time that the soldier died since the war resumed on March 18.
Israel vowed to step up its attack on Gaza and occupied large “safe zones” indefinitely within a small coastal zone of more than 2 million people. Hamas wants Israeli troops to withdraw from territory.
Israel has also blocked Gaza over the past six weeks, again blocking the entry of food and other goods.
This week, aid groups issued an alert saying thousands of children are undernourished, most of whom eat almost no meal a day, and stocks are reduced, according to the United Nations.
On Friday, Dr. Hanan Balkhy, head of the World Health Organization's Eastern Mediterranean Office, urged the new U.S. in Israel to Israel Mike Huckabee to prompt the country to lift a lockdown in Gaza so drugs and other aid can be imported.
“I hope he sees it with his own eyes,” she said.
The war began when Hamas-led militants attacked southern Israel on October 7, 2023, killing about 1,200 people, mainly civilians, and kidnapped 251 people. Most of the hostages have been released in a ceasefire agreement or other transactions. Hamas currently has 59 hostages, 24 of whom are considered alive.
Since then, the Israeli attack has killed more than 51,000 Palestinians, mainly women and children, according to the Gaza Ministry of Health, which has not distinguished between civilians and combatants.
The war destroyed much of Gaza and most of its food production capacity. About 90% of the population is displaced, with thousands living in tent camps and bombed buildings.
Frustration has been growing on both sides, with rare public protests in Hamas in Gaza, and Israel continues to hold weekly rallies urging the government to reach a deal to bring all hostages home.
– Files with Associated Press Jamesy Keaten
& Copy 2025 Canadian Press
