Israel boosts forces along Gaza Strip border amid tensions

JERUSALEM, Oct. 4  — Israel’s military said on Thursday it was boosting forces along the separating fence with the Gaza Strip amid rising tensions in the region.
A “wide-scale Israel Defense Forces reinforcements in the southern command” were started, said a military statement, citing the policy to “thwart terror activity and prevent infiltrations into Israel from the Gaza Strip.”
The decision was taken following a situation assessment held earlier Thursday morning by Chief of the General Staff Gadi Eisenkot and senior military and security officials.
The new deployment will span over the next few days, the statement said.
The spokesperson warned that the military is “prepared for a wide range of scenarios” and held Hamas “accountable for all that happens in the Gaza Strip and from it.”
The move came after Yahya Sinwar, leader of Islamic Hamas movement in Gaza, gave an interview to an Israeli newspaper, which was published on Thursday and in which he called on for a cease-fire with Israel.
In what appeared to be the first interview to an Israeli newspaper, Sinwar told the Yedioth Aharonot daily that “I’m not saying I won’t fight anymore. I’m saying I don’t want any more wars. What I want is an end to the siege,” said the 55-year-old leader, referring to the crippling blockade Israel has imposed on the Gaza Strip since 2007.
“My first commitment is to act in the interest of my people, to protect them and to defend their right for freedom and independence,” he added.
He warned that if Israel does not lift the blockade, which inflicted a humanitarian crisis on Gaza, another round of war would be impossible to prevent. – XINHUA