By Daniel Davis
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addressed the people of Israel in a speech on Saturday in which he articulated, in the strongest language to date, that his “number one objective” is to eradicate Hamas and considers it Israel’s “second war of independence.” The next stage of the war, he explained, had begun: the ground incursion into Gaza.
The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) Air Force has dramatically escalated its attacks on Gaza in the past several days, and the destruction of the Strip’s urban areas has risen to a level the region has not seen in half a century. The civil population in the Palestinian enclave has suffered more than 8,000 killed and likely many thousands more wounded. There are between 500 and 600 American citizens trapped in this hellscape and continue to be denied permission to leave.
This piece was originally published in The National Interest on October 30, 2023. Read more HERE.