{"id":124253,"date":"2025-09-17T17:05:00","date_gmt":"2025-09-17T15:05:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/?p=124253"},"modified":"2025-09-16T11:51:57","modified_gmt":"2025-09-16T09:51:57","slug":"17-05-115","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/?p=124253","title":{"rendered":"Katz: \u2018Gaza is burning\u2019 as IDF expands operation in Gaza City"},"content":{"rendered":"<hr \/>\n<p>.<\/p>\n<h3 style=\"text-align: center;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.jns.org\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"center alignleft\" src=\"http:\/\/www.reunion68.com\/Biuletyn\/img\/jns-1.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"35%\" \/><\/a><span style=\"text-decoration: underline; color: #000080;\"><strong><a style=\"color: #000080; text-decoration: underline;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.jns.org\/katz-gaza-is-burning-as-idf-fights-for-hostages-freedom-hamass-defeat\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Katz: \u2018Gaza is burning\u2019 as IDF expands operation in Gaza City<\/a><\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><strong>update desk\u00a0<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<hr style=\"height: 15px; background: #d0e6fa; width: 100%;\" \/>\n<div>\n<h4 style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>&#8220;The IDF strikes with an iron fist at the terror infrastructure,&#8221; said the Israeli defense minister.<\/strong><\/h4>\n<\/div>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/me.jnsi.org\/uploads\/2025\/09\/F250915OM08-1320x880.jpg\" width=\"100%\" \/><span style=\"color: #808080;\"><em>Smoke rises from the Hamas-controlled Al-Ghafri Tower in Gaza City after it was hit by an Israeli airstrike, Sept. 15, 2025. Photo by Omar Mohammed\/Flash90.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><span style=\"color: #000080;\">Defense Minister Israel Katz said on Tuesday that \u201cGaza is burning\u201d as the Israel Defense Forces confirmed that it had started broader operations to destroy Hamas terror infrastructure in Gaza City.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><span style=\"color: #000080;\">Jerusalem \u201cwill not relent and we will not turn back until the mission is complete,\u201d the defense minister declared.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><span style=\"color: #000080;\">\u201cGaza is burning,\u201d Katz said. \u201cThe IDF strikes with an iron fist at the terror infrastructure, and IDF soldiers fight with courage to create the conditions for the release of the hostages and the defeat of Hamas.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><span style=\"color: #000080;\">Col. Avichay Adraee, the head of the Arab media division of the IDF Spokesperson\u2019s Unit, subsequently confirmed on X that the army \u201cbegan destroying Hamas\u2019s infrastructure in Gaza City.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><span style=\"color: #000080;\">\u201cGaza City is considered a dangerous combat zone, and staying in the area puts you at risk,\u201d Adraee added, urging Palestinians to join \u201cthe more than 40% of the city\u2019s residents\u201d who have already evacuated.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><span style=\"color: #000080;\">U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, speaking as he departed Israel for Doha on Tuesday morning, also suggested that the IDF offensive to capture Gaza City had already started.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><span style=\"color: #000080;\">\u201cThe Israelis have begun to take operations there,\u201d Rubio stated. \u201cSo we think we have a very short window of time in which a deal can happen.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><span style=\"color: #000080;\">\u201cWe don\u2019t have months anymore, and we probably have days and maybe a few weeks to go,\u201d Washington\u2019s top diplomat continued.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><span style=\"color: #000080;\">\u201cOur preference, our No. 1 choice, is that this ends through a negotiated settlement,\u201d he added. \u201cAt some point, this has to end. At some point, Hamas has to be defanged, and we hope it can happen through a negotiation. But I think time, unfortunately, is running out.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><span style=\"color: #000080;\">Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu weighed in later on Tuesday, saying the military had launched an \u201d intense operation\u201d in Gaza.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><span style=\"color: #000080;\">Israel \u201cis at a critical stage in this struggle and there are consequences,\u201d Netanyahu said, according to a statement from his spokesman.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><span style=\"color: #000080;\">On Monday night, the IDF said it had eliminated 21 senior operatives of the Iranian-controlled Palestinian Islamic Jihad terror organization, which participated in the Oct. 7, 2023 massacre alongside Hamas.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><span style=\"color: #000080;\">The operation\u2014led by the IDF\u2019s Southern Command in coordination with its Military Intelligence Directorate, the Israeli Air Force and the Israel Security Agency (Shin Bet)\u2014targeted commanders, weapons experts and field operatives.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><span style=\"color: #000080;\">Among those killed were key terrorists responsible for arms production, artillery, sniper and sector command positions, including Mohammad Radwan Ramadan Mushtaha, the head of military armament in Gaza\u2019s north, and Amir al-Shaam Faiz Wadi, commander of the terror group\u2019s sniper array in the Khan Younis Brigade, the IDF stated on Monday.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><span style=\"color: #000080;\">Other high-ranking commanders killed include Jamal Mahmoud Salem Ma\u2019amar, who oversaw artillery operations in Rafah, as well as Fazel Zakariya Ahmad Abu al-Ata, a Gaza Brigade sector commander.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><span style=\"color: #000080;\">The IDF also eliminated five operatives with specialized knowledge of arms production, including Mansour Mahmoud Mohammad Salah and Ahmad Ziyad Qasem Qadi, as well as several field operatives who had executed direct attacks against Israeli forces. Ihab Bassam Yousef Abu al-Kheir, head of PIJ\u2019s sniper squads, was among those killed.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><span style=\"color: #000080;\">\u201cThe IDF and the ISA will continue to act decisively against all terrorist organizations in the Gaza Strip,\u201d the IDF said.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><span style=\"color: #000080;\">According to Israel\u2019s\u00a0<em>Channel 12 News<\/em>, the military hit dozens of targets in Gaza City on Monday night, in a wave of aerial attacks described as \u201cintense and significant.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><span style=\"color: #000080;\">Residents in central Israel reported hearing the echoes of the intense explosions.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><span style=\"color: #000080;\">Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa\u2019ar stressed last week that Jerusalem was still seeking to end the war based on U.S. President Donald Trump\u2019s latest\u00a0<a style=\"color: #000080;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.jns.org\/saar-israel-seeking-end-to-gaza-war-based-on-trump-proposal\/\">truce proposal<\/a>\u00a0and according to the principles set by Israel\u2019s Cabinet.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><span style=\"color: #000080;\">Netanyahu on Aug. 14 outlined\u00a0the Cabinet\u2019s\u00a0<a style=\"color: #000080;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.jns.org\/netanyahu-lays-out-principles-for-victory-and-ending-hamas-war\/\">objectives<\/a>\u00a0as the disarmament of Hamas, the return of all 48 remaining hostages, the demilitarization of the Gaza Strip, Israeli security control and establishing an alternative civilian administration in the enclave.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><span style=\"color: #000080;\">Netanyahu on Monday evening expressed appreciation for the Trump administration\u2019s \u201cunflinching support for Israel\u2019s battle against Hamas and the release of all our hostages.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><span style=\"color: #000080;\">The prime minister was responding to Trump\u00a0<a style=\"color: #000080;\" href=\"https:\/\/truthsocial.com\/@realDonaldTrump\/posts\/115210251262068973\">stating<\/a>\u00a0that he just read a news report that \u201cHamas has moved the hostages above ground to use them as human shields against Israel\u2019s ground offensive\u201d in Gaza City.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><span style=\"color: #000080;\">\u201cI hope the leaders of Hamas know what they\u2019re getting into if they do such a thing,\u201d he had written on his Truth Social platform. \u201cThis is a human atrocity, the likes of which few people have ever seen before. Don\u2019t let this happen or all bets are off. Release all hostages now.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><span style=\"color: #000080;\">Forty-eight hostages remain in terror captivity in the Strip, 711 days after the Hamas-led Oct. 7 cross-border attack. According to Israeli estimates, up to 20 are believed to be alive.<\/span><\/p>\n<hr style=\"height: 15px; background: #d0e6fa; width: 100%;\" \/>\n<div id=\"content\" class=\"content-alignment\">\n<div id=\"watch-description\" class=\"yt-uix-button-panel\">\n<div id=\"watch-description-text\" style=\"text-align: center;\">\n<p><em>Zawarto\u015b\u0107 publikowanych artyku\u0142\u00f3w i materia\u0142\u00f3w nie reprezentuje pogl\u0105d\u00f3w ani opinii Reunion&#8217;68,<\/em><em><br \/>\nani te\u017c webmastera Blogu Reunion&#8217;68, chyba ze jest to wyra\u017anie zaznaczone.<br \/>\nTwoje uwagi, linki, w\u0142asne artyku\u0142y lub wiadomo\u015bci prze\u015blij na adres:<br \/>\n<\/em><span style=\"color: #000080;\"><strong><em><a style=\"color: #000080;\" href=\"mailto:webmaster@reunion68.com\"><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">webmaster@reunion68.com<\/span><\/a><\/em><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<hr style=\"width: 100%;\" \/>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>. Katz: \u2018Gaza is burning\u2019 as IDF expands operation in Gaza City update desk\u00a0 &#8220;The IDF strikes with an iron fist at the terror infrastructure,&#8221; said the Israeli defense minister. Smoke rises from the Hamas-controlled Al-Ghafri Tower in Gaza City after it was hit by an Israeli airstrike, Sept. 15, 2025. Photo by Omar Mohammed\/Flash90. 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