Israel military spokesman says Hamas cannot be defeated, clashes with Netanyahu

The IDF signaled its agreement, saying it was acting to achieve Israel’s war aims “tirelessly” and “will continue to do so.” Hagari, he said in a statement, “addressed in his interview the elimination of Hamas as an idea and ideology, which was stated explicitly and clearly. Any other statement is taking the quote out of context.”

Hamas welcomed Hagari’s comments as an “admission” of defeat.

Kobi Michael, a senior fellow at the Tel Aviv-based Institute for National Security Studies, said he was not convinced that Hagari intended to directly disparage Israel’s military strategy, but said he could see how his comments would be interpreted that way.

“He was trying to tell the truth,” Michael, who is also a fellow at the Misgav Institute for National Security and Zionist Strategy, told NBC News in a phone interview Thursday. But he said he believed Netanyahu understood that truth — and that Israel’s goal was ultimately to prevent Hamas from regrouping and maintaining power in Gaza.

Still, Hagari’s comments reflected a growing push for Netanyahu to present an actionable plan for the day after the war in Gaza.

“If we don’t bring something else to Gaza, then at the end of the day we will have Hamas,” warned Michael.

The absence of a post-war plan for Gaza was at the heart of Gantz’s reasoning for abandoning Netanyahu’s war cabinet and also drew criticism from Defense Minister Yoav Gallant.

The comments came as Israeli forces advanced deeper into the southern Gaza city of Rafah, continuing a months-long attack that local authorities say has killed more than 37,000 people.

Netanyahu has faced global criticism over the impact of the war on Palestinian civilians and domestic pressure to agree to a ceasefire deal that would guarantee the release of the remaining hostages in Gaza. In recent weeks, he has also faced criticism for his approach to exchanges taking place across Israel’s northern border with Lebanon.

The IDF said on Tuesday that plans for a new offensive in the north had been approved, and the leader of the Iran-backed Hezbollah militant group, Hassan Nasrallah, responded on Wednesday by saying that “the enemy must wait for us to come and get them for land, air and sea”.

The US sent an envoy to the region in a bid to avoid an all-out war in Lebanon, but Netanyahu also sparked consternation in Washington after accusing Israel’s main ally of “withholding weapons and ammunition”.

Since Israel launched its campaign in Gaza following the Hamas attacks on October 7, in which Israeli authorities say around 1,200 people were killed and around 250 others taken hostage, military experts have warned that the aim of eliminating the Hamas was crazy.

The Biden administration has offered the same assessment, with Secretary of State Antony Blinken warning last month that Israel would not be able to fully eliminate Hamas’ presence in Gaza.

The United Nations has warned that thousands of children face possible malnutrition in the enclave, even as the IDF announced brief pauses in fighting to allow humanitarian aid to flow.

A floating pier built by the US and installed along the Gaza coast to help facilitate aid delivery was re-anchored off Gaza beach on Wednesday, a senior defense official told NBC News.

The official said the U.S. military expects humanitarian aid to begin flowing again soon after it was temporarily taken out of service due to damage and then high seas.