Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu warned at the opening of Sunday's cabinet meeting that Hamas may attempt to carry out terror attacks in the coming weeks in an effort to influence Israel's upcoming elections, and promised a devastating response to any such attempt.
October 7 anniversary
Netanyahu: Hamas to disrupt elections
Prime Minister warns at cabinet meeting that Hamas is preparing terror operations ahead of the vote in an attempt to influence the outcome, and vows that any attack will be thwarted and met with devastating response
Opening the cabinet session ahead of the approaching October 7 anniversary and the memorial events surrounding it, the Prime Minister recalled the massacre Israel endured and the heroes who fell in battle, and stressed the need to continue until every enemy who took part is eliminated: "On the eve of October 7, we remember with sorrow and pain our heroes who fell in the War of Resurrection and our brothers and sisters who fell in the terrible massacre in the Gaza envelope. Women, men, children, babies who were murdered and burned by the monsters of Hamas. In the past three years we have eliminated 4,000 out of 6,000 of these monsters. None of them has immunity. We will reach them all and Hamas rule in Gaza will be eradicated."
Netanyahu went on to describe how the map of the region has been completely transformed since that day: "In these three years, two things have happened: First, we have turned the tables. The State of Israel is the strongest country in the Middle East, our enemies are weaker than ever. Second, in these three years the Resurrection Belt has come back to life. Ninety percent of the residents have returned to their homes and many others have joined them. There is a tremendous wave of construction and rehabilitation in the Gaza envelope, in the cities, kibbutzim, moshavim. Young couples are coming there to start new lives. And this is the victory of the spirit over evil, the victory of Israel over its enemies. The exact same thing is happening in the north as well."
Finally, the Prime Minister warned that Hamas will try to influence the election results and attempt to carry out terror attacks in order to achieve this, but promised that the response to any such attempt will be devastating and severe: "Precisely because Hamas is so weak, it will try to challenge us with the remnants of its forces ahead of the elections in order to try to influence them. We are prepared for this, we will first of all thwart such attempts, and in any case we will respond to this with tremendous force if they make this mistake. I say to all our enemies: see what we have done to you on seven fronts in the War of Resurrection. Don't mess with us."
Netanyahu at the opening of the cabinet meeting| צילום: Photo: Itay Beit-On/GPO, Sound: Yechezkel Kandil/GPO
