Bombardment of Gaza to continue, ground operation needed to rescue hostages, says Israel’s envoy

Israel refuses to halt Gaza bombardment, plans ground offensive to “eradicate Hamas’s capacity” and free hostages. PM Modi thanked for statements; India urged to designate Hamas as terror group. MEA reiterates support for Palestinian cause, concern over civilian deaths. Israel's response to attacks leads to protests worldwide; India joins I2U2 & ME-EU corridor with Israel.

Israel will not stop the bombardment of Gaza, and still plans a ground offensive to “eradicate Hamas’s capacity” and free about 200 Israeli hostages taken by the group during terror attacks on October 7, said Israel’s Ambassador to India Naor Gilon.

Thanking Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his statements, Mr. Gilon said on October 19 that he hopes India, which has not so far designated Hamas as a terror group, would do so. Despite calls from neighbouring Arab countries for an immediate ceasefire, the envoy said that continuing with the operation was necessary for Israel’s “future”.

“The instructions that were given by the Prime Minister (Benjamin Netanyahu) were that we have to make sure that Hamas does not retain the capacity to execute such atrocities again, and to bring back the hostages… For that a ground operation is needed,” Mr. Gilon told The Hindu in an interview. 

“The alternative is that the Jewish state will not exist anymore in the Middle East,” Mr. Gilon added when asked about the high number of civilian casualties a ground invasion would involve, asserting that Israel has called for more than a million residents of Gaza to move southwards in order to protect them. “There is no future for Israel because the citizens will feel that the government is incapable of protecting them and the whole idea will not sustain,” he said.

In multiple terror attacks launched on several Israeli towns along the border with Gaza, Hamas fighters killed more than 1,400 Israelis, took more than 200 hostage, including many children, and continue to send rockets into the country. In its response, the Israeli air force has conducted a sustained bombing operation of Gaza, claiming to have dropped 6,000 bombs in the first six days after the terror strikes, with more than 3,700 Palestinians killed in the airstrikes in total.  

The envoy said that the support Israel received from ordinary Indians had been “overwhelming and heart-warming”, and thanked Mr. Modi for his message on October 7 expressing solidarity with Israel. When asked about subsequent statements, including the emphasis by the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) on following “international humanitarian law”, concern over civilian deaths as well as support for the Palestinian cause, Mr. Gilon said that these had been India’s positions in the past as well. 

“As far as Hamas being designated a terror group, going by what PM Narendra Modi said, Hamas is a terror group, regardless of whether it is designated or not, and I hope it will be done,” he added.