the challenges of “other scenarios” and “the targeted operation” –

Israel is prepared “to defend and attack” and to face challenges from “other scenarios”. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said this during his meeting with the military at the Tel Nof air base, near Tel Aviv. In recent days, concerns have been growing about a possible response from Tehran after an attack on the Iranian consulate in Damascus on April 1st, attributed to Israel, killed at least seven officers of the Revolutionary Guard Corps (Pasdaran). “We are in difficult times. We are in the midst of the war in Gaza, which continues at full speed, even as we continue to work tirelessly for the return of our hostages,” the prime minister said, adding: “We have established a simple rule: anyone harm us, we will harm them. We are ready to meet all the security needs of the State of Israel, both defensively and offensively.”

Meanwhile, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) have launched a “targeted operation” in the central part of the Gaza Strip to “eliminate terrorists and strike the infrastructure” of the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas. The IDF themselves made this known on their Telegram channel, specifying that “before the entry of the troops into the area, the fighter jets of the Israeli Air Force and other aircraft hit the terrorist infrastructures above and below the ground in the Gaza Strip central”. Tel Aviv forces added that they had identified and shot an alleged “armed” militiaman who came out of a tunnel. In the same operation, “the Israeli Navy conducted a series of targeted attacks along the coast of the central Gaza Strip to assist ground troops operating in the area,” the statement concludes.