Defense Minister Benny Gantz clarified this afternoon (Tuesday) in a briefing to military reporters that the purpose of the operation in Gaza is to damage the terrorist organization Hamas.
"We are less than a day from the beginning of the operation - in a massive wave of attacks, in a campaign that began in Jerusalem. We went out for a campaign that will severely strike Hamas," he noted.
Gantz stressed that these are very large-scale attacks, "every weapon has an address and it will intensify in the coming days. It is difficult to estimate how long it could take."
"I assume that there will be a victory speech by Hamas, but we need to differentiate between this and the reality - and the reality will be a very serious blow," Gantz said.
The defense minister added, "At the same time, we are preparing for the defensive efforts in the home front. I conducted a situation assessment yesterday and I am on my way to the home front command to continue thia. The heads of the authorities in the envelope are giving us room to maneuver."