Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu shared remarks at the start of the weekly Cabinet meeting Sunday.
“Last night, we successfully concluded five days of fighting against the Islamic Jihad terrorist organization. Before starting the operation, the directive I gave, together with the Defense Minister, to the IDF and ISA amounted to two words: ‘Initiative’ and ‘surprise’. I congratulated the IDF Chief-of-Staff and the Director of the ISA yesterday also with two words: ‘Well done,’” he said.
“Indeed, the operation was perfect. With complete surprise and continuous initiative, we targeted the entire Islamic Jihad leadership in Gaza. We destroyed 17 Jihad command centers. We eliminated dozens of terrorists. We hit rocket and missile arsenals, took out anti-tank units, etc.,” he added.
The prime minister reemphasized the nation’s focus on retaliation against those who seek to harm Israel.
“For two months, since the establishment of the government, I have reiterated: Whoever harms us or even tries to harm us – will pay the price. Today, the enemies of Israel in Gaza and far beyond Gaza, know that even if they try to hide, we can, and we will, always reach them. This awareness was significantly strengthened during Operation Shield and Arrow. We changed the equation,” he stated.
“I would like to thank the IDF commanders and soldiers, and the men and women of the ISA, for their important actions on defense and on offense. And to you, the citizens of Israel, especially the residents of the area around the Gaza Strip, thank you for your backing and your steadfast resilience, which enabled us to succeed in this important operation,” he added.
Netanyahu continued with gratitude toward those involved in leading the operation in recent operations against terrorists.
“During the operation, including last night, I was in continuous contact with council heads in the area around the Gaza Strip in order to deal with problems regarding protection, replenishment and other areas. I would like to thank Prime Minister’s Office Director General Yossi Shelley for his dedicated work. And from the security achievements to the government’s achievements in other areas, for the full cooperation of all government ministers, I would like to thank you,” he noted.