No aid for Gaza without Hamas defeat, says Ben Gvir
Itamar Ben Gvir, Israel’s national security minister, has said there will be no ceasefire agreement with Hamas and that humanitarian aid will not enter Gaza unless the group is “defeated,” Middle East Eye reported on April 18th.
Ben Gvir said on X: “No deal, no ceasefire, no aid – just continued fighting until [Hamas] are defeated in Gaza.” He also stressed that the Palestinian group “will not set conditions.”
According to The Times of Israel, Ben Gvir followed up on his statement. Gvir added that people should expect “only the continuation of war until the surrender of the Nazis from Gaza.” He also stated Israel will “Exert all the power and might – until Hamas begs on its knees. Until complete victory.”
The minister has urged putting pressure on Hamas to accept military defeat. But aid agencies have said that Palestinians are facing a dire situation due to Israel’s obstruction of aid entering Gaza, which has gone on for weeks.
On April 7th, Israel’s far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich vowed to enforce the block on all humanitarian aid entering Gaza. At the Yedioth Ahronoth’s People of Israel Conference he stated “not even a grain of wheat will enter Gaza.”
On March 2nd, Israel shut all Gaza borders and blocked aid from arriving. This not only worsened Gaza’s humanitarian crisis, but also directly clashed with the ceasefire’s core goal to restore humanitarian access.
Since Israel restarted its assault on March 18th, Israeli forces have killed more than 1,400 Palestinians and injured around 3,600. Although some reports hinted ate the possibility of Israeli leaders easing aid restrictions, Smotrich made sure to dismiss the proposal.
Smotrich stated that the eliminating Hamas is the primary objective of the war. He also added this goal was more important than the secure release of Israeli hostage.
Middle East Eye, The Times of Israel
