Israel kills 13000 Hamas fighters: Netanyahu

At least 13,000 “terrorists (Hamas fighters)” were among Palestinians killed during Israel’s war against Hamas in the Gaza Strip, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Sunday (March 10).

He vowed to press ahead with an offensive in the south of the enclave - a move U.S. President Joe Biden has described as his “red line.”

Nearly 31,000 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza during the five-month long war, that began after Hamas militants attacked Israel on October 7, killing 1,200 people and seizing 253 hostages, according to Israeli tallies.

The Gaza health ministry does not break down the death toll between civilians and Hamas militants but has said that 72% of those killed were women and children. Hamas dismisses Israel’s toll for militants as attempts to portray “fake victories”.

Netanyahu told German media company Axel Springer, which owns Politico and Germany’s Bild newspaper and broadcaster Welt TV, that extending Israel’s offensive into Rafah in southern Gaza was key to defeating Hamas.

“We are very close to victory ... Once we begin military action against the remaining terror battalions in Rafah, it is only a question of weeks” until the intensive phase of fighting is concluded, Bild newspaper quoted Netanyahu as saying.

Biden and his aides have urged Netanyahu in strong terms not to launch a major offensive in Rafah until Israel crafts a plan for mass evacuation of civilians. More than half of Gaza’s 2.3 million people are sheltering in the Rafah area.

Three quarters of Hamas battalions had been destroyed and if the offensive is halted now, it would only allow them to regroup, Bild quoted Netanyahu as saying.

(With inputs from agencies)