Israeli Forces Intensify Operations Against Hamas Militants in Gaza
Prime Minister Netanyahu Declares Second Phase of Gaza War
As Israeli forces stepped up ground operations against Hamas militants on Saturday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared that the country has entered the second phase of the Gaza war and vowed to "destroy the enemy above ground and below ground."
With Israeli jets dropping more bombs on the Palestinian enclave run by Hamas and military officials indicating that a long-threatened ground offensive was preparing, Gaza's besieged population had virtually no touch with the outside world.
Netanyahu would not go so far as to label the recent Israeli ground operations as a full-scale invasion, but he did caution Israelis to expect a "long and hard" military assault during a press conference in Tel Aviv.
Israel was concentrating its offensive on Palestinian people in the northern Gaza Strip, and he reaffirmed Israel's request that everyone leave the area.
