Senior official in grave warning: "Soldiers' blood will be spilled"
Reserve Major General Yaakov Amidror calls for increasing military pressure in new areas of Gaza and warns that a long ceasefire will strengthen Hamas and cost lives when fighting resumes.
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Yaakov Amidror, former head of the National Security Council, addressed today the negotiations for a hostage deal, emphasizing that "the history of these negotiations shows that when nothing worked, Israel moved in Hamas's direction, in almost all these cases." In an interview he gave to Radio 103FM, Amidror called on Israel to "speak our language and stand behind our principles," noting that when two sides want opposite things, it's difficult to reach a compromise.
According to Amidror, the IDF can definitely "escalate the military pressure" and enter areas where it hasn't operated until now. He explains that this stems from understanding that there may be no chance of reaching an agreement on the hostages through negotiations, and then there's a need to reach them militarily. "This means reaching areas where we haven't operated until today, and these are the places where Hamas is still active, and this is the source of its power," he clarifies.
"The source of its power is that it holds the hostages and knows that we want them alive and that we won't operate in places where they are held, and it can pressure us each time, in exchange for more hostage releases, which allows it to live longer, prepare for the next phase and be more ready for it."
Regarding the discussed agreement and the possibility that Israel will return to fighting after a ceasefire, Amidror said: "I don't believe that the State of Israel agreed to American guarantees that the IDF won't operate." He referred to President Trump's words, which to his understanding said that "the negotiations will be serious and open," and not an attempt to deceive.
Amidror expresses grave concern about the consequences of a long ceasefire: "IDF soldiers will pay with blood when we return to fighting. If we give Hamas 60 days to prepare for the next phase, then when the next phase comes, it will be better prepared and we will pay with blood. You don't need to be a great genius to say this sentence."