Israelâs top military spokesman has said Hamas cannot be made to âdisappear,â casting doubt about whether the governmentâs war aim of defeating the militant group can be achieved and drawing a sharp rebuke from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
âThe idea that it is possible to destroy Hamas, to make Hamas vanish â that is throwing sand in the eyes of the public,â Israel Defense Forces (IDF) spokesman Read Adm. Daniel Hagari said Wednesday in an interview with Israelâs Channel 13.
Hagariâs comments prompted a terse response from Netanyahuâs office, which said Israelâs security cabinet âhas defined the destruction of Hamasâ military and governing capabilitiesâ as one of the aims of its war in Gaza.
âThe IDF, of course, is committed to this,â Netanyahuâs office said.
The IDF later sought to clarify Hagariâs remarks, confirming it is committed to the governmentâs war goals and claiming that Hagari was only referring to Hamas âas an ideology and as an idea.â
Despite the IDFâs attempt to soften Hagariâs remarks, cracks appear to be deepening between the Israeli government and its military. Netanyahu has come under increasing pressure from members of his government and Israelâs allies, including the United States, to devise a strategy for the post-war governance of Gaza after Israelâs devastating bombardment of the isolated enclave.
In response to Hamasâ October 7 attacks on Israel, when militants killed more than 1,200 people and took some 250 others hostage, Israel launched its war in Gaza with the primary goals of recovering the hostages, destroying Hamasâ ability to govern there and ensuring another attack could not be launched from the Palestinian territory.
But after eight months of war, and with the prospect of many more to come, Hagariâs comments echoed the growing fears that Israelâs military campaign may be unable to achieve those aims and that the group could remain a potent ideological force, despite Netanyahuâs claim to have killed more than 14,000 Hamas fighters. CNN cannot independently verify that figure.
âTelling the public that there will be no terror in Gaza, no military operatives, no rockets and no armed men is a lie,â Hagari said in a separate interview with CNN affiliate Kan 11.
âThere will be terror in Gaza. Hamas is an idea, deeply rooted in the hearts of the residents of Gaza. To replace those who handle civil services and distribute or steal food, something else needs to be established. This is a decision for the political echelon, and the army will implement it.â
In a sign that Israelâs cabinet may be tempering its initial war aims of destroying Hamas in its entirety, government spokesperson David Mencer said that eliminating Hamasâ âmilitary and government capabilitiesâ does not ânecessarily meanâ killing every member of the group.
Mencer told reporters Thursday that Hagariâs comments had not harmed the war effort, but stressed it was the militaryâs responsibility to carry out âthe will of the elected government.â
During discussions about the US-backed ceasefire plan, Netanayhu also appeared to have retreated from his maximalist rhetoric at the warâs outset. A statement issued last week â reportedly from the Prime Ministerâs office â said Israel will not end the war âbefore achieving all its war objectives: destroying Hamasâs military and governing capabilities, freeing all the hostages and ensuring Gaza doesnât pose a threat to Israel in the future.â
The statement did not reference Netanyahuâs oft-repeated promise of total victory, nor the elimination of Hamas in full.
Hagariâs comments sparked the latest in a growing series of public disagreements between Israelâs government and military. Last weekend, the IDF announced a daily âtactical pauseâ of military activity along a route in southern Gaza to allow aid to be distributed â a decision that rankled Netanyahu, an Israeli official told CNN.
Netanyahu contacted his military secretary and said the idea was unacceptable, but later backed down after being assured the fighting in Rafah would continue, according to the official, speaking on the condition of anonymity.
The IDFâs decision to implement tactical pauses also drew fierce criticism from the increasingly rancorous far-right wing of Netanyahuâs coalition. National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir said whoever made the decision âis evil and a fool who should not continue to be in his position.â
An IDF spokesperson later told CNN the decision for the âtactical pauseâ was approved by Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant.
While Israel has had some success in returning those abducted on October 7 â both through a ceasefire-for-hostage deal in November and a daring rescue operation to retrieve four people earlier this month â hope that Israel will be able to return the hostages may also be dwindling.
A senior Hamas official told CNN he has âno ideaâ how many of the 120 remaining hostages in Gaza are still alive, and that any deal to release them must include guarantees of a permanent ceasefire and the complete withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza.