Israeli efforts to rehabilitate southern communities attacked by Hamas on Oct. 7 will take years and go beyond a planned ground offensive in the Gaza Strip, a member of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's war cabinet said Thursday.
Benny Gantz, a former general who joined Netanyahu from the opposition in an emergency government, signaled to Israel's enemies other than Hamas that they too risked being destroyed.
"The battle against Gaza terrorism will continue within the territory of the strip, going deeper, wherever and whenever necessary to ensure the security of the communities that will be restored and rebuild the region," he said in a speech.
"The (land) maneuver will be only one stage of a long process that will include defensive, diplomatic and social aspects that will take years."
Gantz, Netanyahu's longtime political rival, said the war cabinet formed over two weeks was functioning well and making decisions based on calculations relevant to the national crisis.
Israel has vowed to annihilate Hamas, which has sworn its destruction and is supported by Iran and Hezbollah in Lebanon. "The danger of destruction will not be our destiny, but the destiny of those who do us wrong," Gantz said.
