MK Nissim Vaturi (Likud) told Arutz Sheva - Israel National News that the withdrawal of IDF troops from Gaza is by no means an end to the war. “We will not give up on the hostages or Rafah. We will invade and kill every last one of Hamas,” he stressed.
Vaturi does not consider the withdrawal part of the tactical process: “We must defeat Rafah. There is no such thing as retreating for the IDF, and no such thing as returning without the hostages. We will be asking extremely difficult questions to the IDF and political officials, and we will be expecting answers - how will the army advance towards Rafah? Are there any goals that have not been achieved? We must hold the Prime Minister to his promise to invade Rafah and destroy Hamas.”
He also stated that although he is aware of the negotiations for a prisoner exchange agreement and intends to demand answers about it, he does not want to discuss the negotiations publicly. “It makes no sense to leave Khan Yunis without them invading Rafah to recover the hostages. I believe that there is a reality that must be created here, and it cannot happen without destroying Hamas in Rafah.”
Regarding the international pressures that some believe to be behind certain disadvantageous agreements Israel has made, he stated: “We must not give up on Israel's security for any reason. That is what I said half a year ago as well. We need to make our own bombs and rely only on ourselves. From the first missile, we have relied on the USA, and for every missile we have been required to allow another truck of humanitarian aid to our enemies. I have not heard of the Americans doing the same for their enemies.”
‘‘We must continue to press them, including invading Rafah, and our allies need to understand that if they truly want to commit to Israel's security as the Americans say, they need to realize that we must finish off the terrorists and that we will not leave Gaza without destroying Hamas.’’
MK Vaturi commented on the criticism from some members of the coalition regarding the decision to have the Knesset enter a recess, saying that he does not believe that the Knesset is truly on recess, and that he is involved in the deliberations regarding closing the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), and otherwise still working.