“There is no alternative to victory”

Eight Israeli soldiers, including a captain, died this Saturday in a big explosion during an operation in Rafah, in the southern tip of Gaza, as confirmed by the Army, on the day with the highest casualties among the ranks of Israel since January.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reacted shortly afterwards and reiterated that the offensive in the Strip must continue, since “there is no alternative to victory.”

The captain is Wassem Mahmoud, 23 years old and from Beit Jann (in northern Israel) and was the deputy commander of the 601st Engineering Battalion of the Israeli Army.

“Seven other soldiers also fell in this incident. Their families have been notified,” a military statement added.

Is the deadliest day for the Israeli Army since January 22when 21 soldiers died when two buildings collapsed on them in the deadliest incident since Israel launched the ground operation in the enclave.

The al-Qassam brigades, the armed wing of Hamas, claimed this Saturday the attack as “an ambush against enemy vehicles” that were in the Tal al-Sultan area, in the west of Rafah.

According to the Islamist organization, they attacked an armored combat engineering vehicle ‘Namer’ using an Al Yassin 105 projectile, which set it on fire and killed the eight soldiers.

Army spokesman Daniel Hagari declared on Saturday night that the incident was “probably” caused by an explosive device placed near armor or an anti-tank missile shot at him.

However, the armed forces point out that the explosion of a bomb hit the vehicle, which was loaded with explosive material, causing it to also explode and triggering a large detonation that killed the eight soldiers.

Throughout the day, the Israeli Army launched numerous raids and air attacks against different points in the east, center and west of the city, bordering Egypt.

Rafah has become one of the centers of the Israeli offensive in the Strip and the source of most of its casualties since the armed forces entered the city on May 6.

Prime Minister Netanyahu released a video statement to show his condolences for the death of the eight soldiers in Rafah, and sent a clear message.

“This monstrous enemy does not intend to stop here. Along with the rest of Iran’s evil axis of evil, it will continue to try to destroy us,” he said in the video, “so there is no alternative to victory.”

Under this premise, Netanyahu once again claimed to achieve the “war objectives” of Israel against the ceasefire: destroy the military and government capabilities of Hamas, rescue the hostages who remain captive since the October 7 attack, ensure that Gaza is not a threat to the country and that evacuated residents can return to their homes, both in the north, next to the border with Lebanon, and in the south.

“Many more challenges await us,” predicted the Israeli leader in the face of the war that the country is waging “on several fronts, including the international one.”

Currently, Israel is not only fighting in Gaza, where 307 Israeli soldiers have died – more than 620, counting on October 7 – and 37,296 Gazans, but also on the border with Lebanon, where the military maintains a constant exchange of fire and every increasingly intense with the Shiite and pro-Iranian militia Hezbollah, which raises fears of escalation to an open war.

“We fight to ensure our existence and our future, we fight to bring back our hostages,” said the Israeli head of government.

Thousands of Israelis demonstrated in the afternoon throughout the country, with special attendance in Tel Aviv – where concentrations of this type take place every Saturday – to protest against Netanyahu’s government and demand a ceasefire agreement that allows the return of the hostages, since there are still 116 in the Strip and 40, according to the Army, would be dead.

Andrey Kozlov, one of the four hostages rescued alive last Saturday in the operation in Nuseirat in which 274 Gazans died, published a video in which he called to attend the usual protest in Tel Aviv’s Hostage Square this Saturday and demanded a ceasefire from the prime minister.

“For the hostages who remain in Gaza there is one decision, only one: it is the agreement between Israel and Hamas,” demanded the 27-year-old.

Until now, negotiations between both sides have always met with the same pitfall: the end of the war, an essential condition for the Islamist organization in order to return the hostages, while Israel maintains that it will not stop its offensive until it ends.