Israeli Defense Minister Tells Troops to ‘Be Ready’ to Invade Gaza

Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant on Thursday told Israeli troops to “be ready” to invade Gaza as Israeli airstrikes continued to pound the besieged enclave.

“Whoever sees Gaza from afar now, will see it from the inside … I promise you,” Gallant told troops near the Gaza border. “It might take a week, a month, two months until we destroy them.”

Other Israeli officials addressed troops near Gaza and also signaled an invasion would happen soon. “Now, the maneuver is going to move the fighting to their territory. We are going to beat them in their territory,” said Maj. Gen. Yaron Finkelman, head of the Israeli military’s Southern Command.

The Israeli officials stressed that the war will not be short. “It’s going to be difficult, long and intense,” Finkelman said.