Occupied Jerusalem — Another round of fighting between the Israeli regime and Gaza Strip is inevitable, Defence Minister Avigdor Lieberman said Monday, despite attempts to reach a long-term truce.
Lieberman said in a video statement distributed by his office that “the question is not to know if the next confrontation will take place, but when”.
Lieberman also appeared to suggest that all Palestinians killed in the Gaza Strip since protests and clashes along the border began on March 30 were linked to Hamas.
“Hamas has suffered 168 dead, 4,348 wounded and dozens of terror infrastructures destroyed,” he said.
He said this despite the fact that most of those killed have been young people protesting or clashing with occupation regime soldiers near the border fence in the blockaded Gaza Strip. Two journalists and, according to the World Health Organisation, three medics have been among those killed.
The Israeli regime has been responsible for three major military flare-ups since July on top of the months of tension along the border.
Thursday saw extensive Israeli air strikes.
Three Palestinians were killed in the Israeli regime strikes, including a mother and her 18-month-old daughter.
It was one of the most serious escalations since the 2014 Gaza war and followed months of rising tensions.
There have been efforts by UN officials and Egypt to secure a long-term truce between Israel and Hamas, though Israeli officials have not commented on them.
Israel has launched three wars on Gaza since 2008.
