Israel on Monday threatened a “full-scale war” against the Palestinian Authority if it prepared an attack against Israeli forces or settlements similar to the one launched by Hamas from Gaza on October 7, 2023.
On Monday, the Israeli military said it shot and killed a Palestinian assailant who had stabbed an Israeli settler in the northern occupied West Bank. The remarks from Defence Minister Israel Katz came after a stabbing attack in the northern occupied West Bank, with the Israeli military saying it had shot and killed the Palestinian attacker.
“If… the Palestinian Authority’s security mechanisms and related bodies initiate, or we know with certainty that they are about to initiate, a terror attack in the style of October 7 against IDF forces and Jewish settlements — Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and I have instructed the IDF to prepare for the opening of a full-scale war,” Defence Minister Israel Katz said in a statement from his office, referring to the Israel Defense Forces. Katz said the military campaign would target the “senior leadership and mechanisms” of the Palestinian Authority, which is based in the West Bank city of Ramallah, as well as “all terror infrastructure” in the territory. He said it would include “targeted killings of senior figures” and the “evacuation of residents from the cities and villages from which terror activity is carried out”, with a permanent Israeli military presence in those areas. Katz said the operation would emulate the so-called “security zones” in which the Israeli military currently operates in Gaza and southern Lebanon.
Israeli Offensive in Gaza Leads to Heavy Casualties
Israel has launched a significant military offensive in Gaza, resulting in the deaths of at least 73,651 people, according to figures from the Palestinian health ministry. This ministry operates under Hamas authority, and its statistics are deemed reliable by the United Nations.
