Israeli Defense Minister Threatens Hamas with 'Total Annihilation' and Warns of New Military Storm

Israeli Defense Minister, Israel Katz, announced today, Tuesday, that the Israeli army will continue its military operations against Hamas as planned, hinting at expanding the scope of military maneuvers in the Gaza Strip amid rising regional tensions.

In an official statement, Katz said that "a massive hurricane storm will hit the skies of Gaza City, and the roofs of the towers of terrorism will shake," describing it as "a final warning to the killers and rapists of Hamas in Gaza and in luxury hotels abroad," implicitly referring to the movement's leaders residing outside Palestinian territories.

Katz demanded that Hamas "release the hostages and lay down their arms immediately," warning that "Gaza will be destroyed, and its fighters will be annihilated" if the confrontation continues, in a provocative speech considered one of the strongest statements issued by the Israeli Ministry of Defense since the beginning of the war.

In the same context, the Israeli army announced that it carried out an airstrike targeting Hamas leadership, without specifying the location of the operation, coinciding with the sound of explosions in the Qatari capital, Doha, where media sources reported that the Israeli attack targeted a meeting of Hamas leaders discussing an American proposal for a ceasefire.

These statements come hours after Israel announced its responsibility for targeting first-tier leaders of Hamas, including Khalil Hayya, amid a wave of Arab and international condemnations, notably from Qatar, Syria, the UAE, and Iran.