TEL AVIV: Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says Israel is pursuing “forceful deterrence” against Gaza’s Hamas rulers and does not rule out a further escalation.
Meeting with foreign ambassadors on Wednesday, he said “you can either conquer them, and that’s always an open possibility, or you can deter them.”
“We are engaged right now in forceful deterrence, but I have to say, we don’t rule out anything.”
Israel has carried out hundreds of airstrikes against what it says are militant targets in Gaza since the fourth war between the two sides broke out earlier this month. Hamas and other militants have fired more than 3,700 rockets at Israel.
Netanyahu said Israel hopes to restore quiet “quickly” and is doing everything it can to avoid civilian casualties.