Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed to keep up the fight against Hamas militants, but a United Nations humanitarian team leader said Palestinian civilians in Gaza who honor Israeli evacuation orders cannot be guaranteed they will be safe.
Netanyahu, who visited Israeli troops in northern Gaza, told lawmakers from his Likud Party that the war was far from over and dismissed what he cast as media speculation his government might call a halt to the fighting.
He said Israel would not succeed in freeing its remaining hostages held by Hamas without applying military pressure.
“We are not stopping. The war will continue until the end, until we finish it, no less,” Netanyahu, who has defied international calls for a ceasefire, said during the Gaza visit.
Retaliating against Hamas for its deadly Oct. 7 cross-border rampage, Israel has been under pressure from its closest ally the United States to shift operations in Gaza to a lower-intensity phase and reduce civilian deaths.
