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Middle East conflict

Israel close to eliminating Hamas' military and political power — Netanyahu's office

According to Dmitry Gendelman, "the military defeat of Hamas brings closer" the release of hostages held in Gaza

TEL AVIV, September 13. /TASS/. Israel is getting closer to eliminating Hamas’ military and political capabilities, said Dmitry Gendelman, an adviser to the Israeli prime minister's office.

Israel is "getting closer to accomplishing one of the goals of the military operation in Gaza, namely the elimination of Hamas' military and political power," Gendelman wrote on Telegram. "The military defeat of Hamas brings closer" the release of hostages held in Gaza, according to the official.

"Hamas' Khan Younis and Rafah brigades, which fought against the Israel Defense Forces over the past three months, have been destroyed," Gendelman continued. "Thousands of militants have been eliminated, tens of kilometers of tunnels have been destroyed. The IDF controls the Rafah crossing and the Philadelphi Corridor" along the Gaza-Egypt border, he said.

"Israel continues to do everything possible to free the hostages," the official went on to say.

The situation in the Middle East sharply escalated following an incursion of Hamas militants from the Gaza Strip into Israel on October 7, accompanied by killings of residents of Israeli settlements near the border and taking hostages, including children, women and elderly people. Israel has declared a complete siege of the Gaza Strip and has started delivering strikes on that area and parts of Lebanon and Syria. That was followed by an Israeli ground operation in the enclave.

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Middle East conflict

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