Israeli Chief of General Staff Herzi Halevi said on Saturday that Israeli forces will resume attacks on the Gaza Strip immediately after the temporary humanitarian pause agreed with Hamas ends.
“We will immediately return to the maneuver in Gaza, root out Hamas and exert significant pressure to release most of the hostages held in Gaza,” the chief of staff said, according to the Israel Broadcasting Corporation.
Israel and Hamas exchanged 24 Israelis and foreigners for 39 Palestinians from Israeli prisons on Friday, the first day of a four-day humanitarian break.
According to the agreement between the warring parties, the prisoners will be released in groups over four days.
Israel launched a massive military campaign in the Gaza Strip following a cross-border attack by Hamas on October 7.
Since then, at least 14,854 Palestinians have been killed, including 6,150 children and more than 4,000 women.
The official death toll in Israel is around 1,200.
