Israel today issued a clear warning to Iran to stay out of the war against Hamas or risk making a “big mistake.”
“Iran must listen carefully to what President Biden said,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s right-hand man, Ophir Falk, told MailOnline in a rare exclusive interview.
‘They should not interfere in the war between Israel and Hamas. We are focused on destroying Hamas and we are also prepared for every other front that I hope does not materialize.
“The IDF is fully prepared and it would be the biggest mistake if anyone were to open a new front against Israel.”
Foreign policy adviser Mr Falk said Israel welcomes support from London and Washington, but described the hundreds of thousands of people at pro-Palestinian marches as “misinformed” about the sheer brutality committed by Hamas.
Netanyahu’s right-hand man Ophir Falk has warned Iran to stay out of Israel’s war with Hamas or risk making a ‘big mistake’
“Iran must listen carefully to what President Biden said,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s right-hand man, Ophir Falk, told MailOnline in a rare exclusive interview
“As far as we can tell, most of the people protesting are ill-informed,” he said.
“I don’t think if they knew that Hamas has slaughtered more than a thousand people and burned babies alive, they would be in favor of that.” It is our duty to tell the world the truth. Killing and murdering Jews is not new to Hamas, it is part of their charter and way of working.
“They are a jihadist/genocidal type of organization that says it wants the Jewish people wiped off the face of the earth. I hope these protesters don’t want the same thing.
“We feel strong support here in Israel from our allies for our mission to destroy Hamas’ infrastructure and military capabilities and free the hostages. Some countries have not openly expressed their support, but they will all thank us if we win.”
He added: ‘It is very important to make clear that we appreciate the support we have received from the US, Britain and many other allies around the world, not only from the leaders but also from the people – we really appreciate that. It is easy to support us when we are the victims, but we appreciate that Britain will also support us when we are the victors.”
Pressed on Israel’s blueprint for Gaza once Hamas is eliminated, he said: “There are a few plans that have been put forward internally and by our partners there are three common denominators.
“First, Gaza is being demilitarized; there remains no entity in Gaza that threatens Israel’s security again.
Second, it must be deradicalized in a way that children are not taught to hate and mosques do not preach to kill Jews.
Third, once these two take place, the country will be rebuilt with the help of the international community and one day peace will be possible in Gaza.”
He shrugged off international pressure on Israel for a ceasefire, saying: “Personally, I don’t feel it, because we know that asking for a ceasefire is the same as asking for a ceasefire with Al-Qaeda after September 11, or after the Battle of Britain.
‘At the moment that is unthinkable. Most of the civilized world knows that it is a war between civilization and barbarism, and if we do not prevail, the West will be next, be it London, Paris or New York, but Israel will prevail, we have no other choice.’
Asked whether the invasion and bombing of Gaza merely created a new generation of radicalized terrorists, he replied: “The IDF and Israel are doing the right thing, although our blood understandably boils, we work with our minds and calculate every step thoroughly. .
“The IDF is fully prepared and it would be the biggest mistake if anyone were to open a new front against Israel,” he said
Smoke rises over Gaza, as seen from southern Israel, amid the ongoing conflict
Israeli soldiers walk through the rubble amid the ongoing ground invasion of Gaza
“The IDF is currently destroying Hamas and making progress rarely seen in modern warfare. There can be an end to terrorism, which happened in Sri Lanka, Peru and Japan, with ISIS and even with the IRA, which is different – terrorist organizations are being eradicated. Hamas will be destroyed. Hamas was founded in 1987 and will end in 2024.”
He said casualty figures from the Hamas-led Health Ministry should be taken “with a grain of salt,” but added: “Nevertheless, every civilian death is a tragedy. We don’t want civilian deaths, nor should that happen. All civilian casualties are at the hands of Hamas.
“Israel has continuously called and warned Gazans to stay out of harm’s way, and Hamas has done its best to prevent civilians from entering safe zones.
‘Hamas held civilians at gunpoint and even went so far as to shoot at Gaza civilians as they attempted to move south. We, Israel, have managed to move hundreds of thousands of civilians to safe zones while killing Hamas terrorists every day. “The IDF has managed to kill thousands of terrorists and we intend to kill or capture them all.”
He emphasized that freeing the hostages was one of the two pillars of Israel’s war objectives – the other being the eradication of Hamas.
‘These missions are not necessarily mutually exclusive and can complement each other.
‘Among the hostages are babies, children, women, the elderly, men of many nationalities. The only thing that has facilitated the hostage rescue so far is IDF pressure.
“There are some countries, like Qatar, that say they have some influence on the release of hostages, but we haven’t seen that yet. …Any country that genuinely cares about the lives of its citizens should demand the immediate and unconditional release of the hostages – all of them.”