Difficult Questions Are Surfacing, but at the End of This War—There Will Be No Hamas.

6 days after the beginning of the war, MG Rafi milo recalls its first moments: “Despite the surprise, we were determined. We called tens of search and rescue battalions and tens of thousands of soldiers for reserve duty. The first thing we did was evacuate the residents of the area surrounding Gaza. We tried to figure out how to do that in an orderly manner, but it wasn’t a simple task due to the large number of terrorists our forces were encountering in the field. We eventually evacuated tens of thousands of civilians from 24 towns and communities.”

The S&R Brigade was also responsible for the recovery of the soldiers and civilians who were killed by terrorists: “We have recovered hundreds of bodies as part of this significant mission and will conclude soon.”

There is also the immense challenge of providing Israel’s civilians with a sense of security. “What happened in the area surrounding Gaza broke the trust of Israeli civilians in the IDF. We are aware that it might take some time to regain this trust, however we will restore it."

"There will be ups and downs”, concludes MG Milo, “but I know our strength. We are focused on the south but always looking north. I am certain that at the end of this war—there will be no Hamas.