Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Sunday that two remaining Hamas pockets in Rafah and Khan Younis will be “eliminated,” vowing that Israel will not relinquish security control in Gaza.
His comments came as the IDF reported killing a Hamas operative who crossed the Yellow Line in Gaza City, posing an immediate threat to troops.
Meanwhile, Hamas claimed US accusations of looting aid trucks were false, despite surveillance footage shared by CENTCOM. Aid distribution remains tightly monitored by an American-led coordination center designed to stabilize humanitarian conditions during the ceasefire.
Reports also emerged of Hamas operatives shutting down Gaza shawarma restaurants for violating price controls—part of the group’s effort to reassert civilian governance.
The UN says looting of aid has sharply declined during the ceasefire, though earlier in the year nearly 90% of deliveries were intercepted before reaching intended recipients.
Netanyahu reiterated that Israel will continue efforts to return all remaining hostages and dismantle Hamas’s military capacity. “We report to our American friends, but we do not seek their permission,” he said, emphasizing Israel’s independent security authority.
