"Gaza's strangulation day": A representative of the National Security Council informed Knesset members of the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee on Monday that the Gaza Strip will be cut off from all connections to water, electricity and internet in the coming day, according to two Knesset members who attended the confidential discussion held at noon due to "iron swords."
According to the MKs, the representative claimed that the decision had been made by the political echelon, and so far the water and electricity sources had been cut off from Israel, but the intention was to bomb sites in Gaza that connect water and electricity to the rest of the Gaza Strip. "In the discussion they called it the strangulation day of the Gaza Strip," said one Knesset member.
According to him, the discussion also reported that the IDF was preparing for the possibility of a ground incursion into Gaza, but no details were given as to whether such an entry would eventually be carried out. In addition, a representative from the head of the IDF's Operations Directorate informed Knesset members that the IDF does not use the "knock on the roof" procedure before attacks in the Gaza Strip during the war.
Demolitions in the Gaza Strip after Israeli air strikes, October 8, 2023/Reuters
Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee Meeting - "Iron Swords" War / Official website, photo: Danny Shem Tov
MK Yuli Edelstein, Committee Chairman: "We have just completed a long meeting that lasted about 5 hours. We heard reports from the IDF, Shin Bet, NSC. The picture we get is certainly not a simple picture, this is what all the people of Israel know. But, I am confident that we are facing the future. We must win, restore deterrence.
We must destroy Hamas' capabilities. In the reports we receive, there is an understanding, both in the cabinet, in the IDF and in all the security agencies, that this is our duty, and we will win. In order for this spirit to be preserved and for heroic deeds not to be in vain, so that we continue to see the same volunteer spirit of the reservists and the general public that helps - we must set an example in the political system as elected officials. Whoever wants to preserve this true Israeli spirit and strive for victory must make every effort to establish a broad emergency government that will lead the Israeli public through these difficult hours, which can be prolonged. Together we will achieve victory."
- More on the subject:
- Gaza War
- Operation Iron Swords