Netanyahu to Hamas: IDF response to arson attacks will intensify ‘as necessary’

Explosion in Gaza City after Israeli airstrike

Times of Israel staff write,”Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday warned Hamas that Israel’s response to the ongoing balloon arson attacks emanating from the Gaza Strip will ‘intensify as needed.’ “The intensity will increase as necessary,” he said at graduation ceremony for new IDF officers.’We are prepared for every scenario, and its best that our enemies understand this, and now. The steel fist of the IDF will powerfully strike anyone who attempts to harm us,’ Netanyahu added.”

“Speaking at the same event, IDF Chief of Staff Gadi Eisenkot said the army is working “around the clock” to fend off attacks and protect Israeli citizens…We will continue to strike those who wish us harm and will bring back security to the residents of the south, as it is in other parts of the country. I am convinced that we will achieve this quickly, with wisdom and determination,” Eisenkot said. Their remarks came as a member of the security cabinet said Israel was possibly on the way to a war with Gaza that would be the “end” for the Hamas terror group’s rule over the Strip, blaming “foreign parties” such as the Palestinian Authority and Iran for the latest escalation of tensions in Israel’s south.” (more…)