Israel PM says Hamas is ‘enemy of civilisation’ and ‘will be crushed’ as he thanks US for support
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said Hamas is the “enemy of civilisation” and will be “crushed”.
Speaking alongside US Secretary of State Antony Blinken in Israel, Mr Netanyahu thanked Washington for its support since Hamas’s attack – adding the militant group should be treated “exactly as ISIS was treated”.
Mr Netanyahu said “no country should harbour” Hamas militants – and those that do should be sanctioned – as he condemned the “murder of children in front of their parents”, the “burning of people alive” and “beheadings”.
Reiterating US support for Israel, Mr Blinken said he “comes before you not only as US Secretary of State, but also as a Jew”.
Israel prepares for ground invasion – follow live conflict updates
“The message that I bring to Israel is this – you may be strong enough on your own to defend yourselves, but as long as America exists you will never, ever have to,” he added.
Warning against any “adversary” thinking of “taking advantage of the current crisis” to attack Israel, he said “the United States has Israel’s back”.
While Israeli civilians are kept hostage by Hamas and Israel continues to bombard Gaza, Mr Blinken said it is “so important” to take every possible precaution to avoid harming innocent people.
Antony Blinken, left, reiterated support for Israel
During his visit to the Middle East, Mr Blinken will try to help secure the release of those hostages – with Israel claiming they have identified 97 captives – and hold talks around a humanitarian corridor in Gaza.
Some of the hostages are American.
It comes as Israel continues to block goods from entering the Gaza Strip, warning it will not break its siege until all hostages taken by Hamas are freed.
The Red Cross has pleaded for fuel to be allowed in to prevent hospitals from “turning into morgues” in the strip of 2.3 million people.
Palestinians look at the destruction of a house in the aftermath of a strike in Khan Younis, in the southern Gaza Strip
Burnt cars are abandoned in a car park near where a festival was held before an attack by Hamas gunmen in southern Israel
In a sign of the conflict’s potential to spread further in the Middle East, Syria’s pro-government media reported Israeli airstrikes targeted the airports in the country on Thursday.
Al-Watan Daily and Dama Post did not give further details other than both airports – in capital city Damascus and the northern city of Aleppo – are out of service with runways damaged.
In the fight with Hamas, the Israelis say they are destroying the group’s ability to govern following Saturday’s surprise attack.
Bodies of civilians killed in Hamas attacks show signs of torture “unlike anything seen before”, Israeli president Isaac Herzog said.
While many anticipate the bombardment of Gaza will precede a ground offensive, IDF (Israeli Defence Forces) spokesperson Lt Col Richard Hecht said no decision has been made on a ground operation yet.
“Anyone who will come near the fence will be shot – anyone,” he said on Thursday morning, adding Hamas is still trying to come into Israel through the sea. “No one’s coming in, no one’s coming out.”
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
Bombardment at dawn in Gaza City
Read more:
What would Israel’s ground attack look like?
How Hamas militants prepared for brutal ground assault
Meanwhile, about 340,000 people have been displaced in Gaza, where Sky News spoke to a mother who found her home “bombed entirely”.
“There’s nothing left,” she said. “There’s nothing visible in the house. It’s been bombed entirely… where shall I go?”
In Gaza’s Al Shati refugee camp, residents were sifting through rubble with their bare hands to search for survivors.
Rescue workers say they lack fuel and equipment to dig victims out of collapsed buildings.
Police officers found a handgun, a silencer and a red notebook described as a “manifesto” when they arrested Luigi Mangione.
The 27-year-old was arrested in December 2024 and charged with killing UnitedHealthcare chief executive Brian Thompson in New York City.
Mangione‘s lawyers want to block prosecutors from showing or telling jurors at his eventual trial in Manhattan about statements he allegedly made and items they said police seized from his backpack during his arrest at a McDonald’s in Pennsylvania.
The objects include a 9mm handgun prosecutors say matches the one used in the killing, a silencer, a magazine with bullets wrapped in underwear and a notebook in which they say Mangione described his intent to “wack” a healthcare executive.
Mangione with his attorney. Pic: Reuters
The defence contends the items should be excluded because police did not get a warrant before searching Mangione’s backpack.
Prosecutors deny claims Mangione was illegally searched and questioned.
They also want to suppress some statements he made to police, such as allegedly giving a false name, because officers asked him questions before telling him he had a right to remain silent.
Last week, Mangione watched surveillance videos of the killing of Mr Thompson, 50, as he walked to a New York City hotel for his company’s annual investor conference.
Mangione has pleaded not guilty to state and federal murder charges.
The state charges carry the possibility of life in prison, while federal prosecutors are seeking the death penalty.
This week’s hearing concerns only the state case, but Mangione’s lawyers want to bar evidence from both cases.
Read more:
The reality of Trump’s trade war
Paramount launches hostile takeover bid for Warner Bros
In September, a judge dismissed two terrorism counts against Mangione, finding prosecutors had not presented enough evidence Mangione intended to intimidate health insurance workers or influence government policy.
Trial dates are yet to be set in either the state or federal cases.
Paramount has launched a £108.4bn hostile bid for Warner Bros, challenging Netflix, which had reached a $72bn takeover deal with the company.
Paramount said on Monday that it was going straight to Warner Bros Discovery (WBD) shareholders with a $30 per share in cash offer for the entirety of the company, including its Global Networks segment, asking them to reject the deal with Netflix.
On Friday Netflix struck a deal to buy WBD, the Hollywood giant behind “Harry Potter” and HBO Max
The agreement means Warner Bros Discovery’s library of film and TV successes including Harry Potter and Game Of Thrones will come under the same roof as Stranger Things and Squid Game.
The cash and stock deal is valued at $27.75 per Warner share, giving it a total enterprise value of $82.7 billion, including debt.
But Paramount says its deal will pay $30 cash per share, representing $18 billion more in cash than its rivals are offering.
In a statement, Paramount said it was making a “strategically and financially compelling offer to WBD shareholders” and a “superior alternative to the Netflix transaction”.
File pic: iStock
David Ellison, chairman and CEO of Paramount, said: “WBD shareholders deserve an opportunity to consider our superior all-cash offer for their shares in the entire company.
“Our public offer, which is on the same terms we provided to the Warner Bros. Discovery Board of Directors in private, provides superior value, and a more certain and quicker path to completion.
“We believe the WBD Board of Directors is pursuing an inferior proposal which exposes shareholders to a mix of cash and stock, an uncertain future trading value of the Global Networks linear cable business and a challenging regulatory approval process.
“We are taking our offer directly to shareholders to give them the opportunity to act in their own best interests and maximize the value of their shares.”
Paramount said it had submitted six proposals to WBD in the course of 12 weeks, but that they were never “meaningfully” engaged with.
This breaking news story is being updated and more details will be published shortly.
Please refresh the page for the latest version.
You can receive breaking news alerts on a smartphone or tablet via the Sky News app. You can also follow us on WhatsApp and subscribe to our YouTube channel to keep up with the latest news.
-
Sports2 years agoStory injured on diving stop, exits Red Sox game
-
Sports3 years ago‘Storybook stuff’: Inside the night Bryce Harper sent the Phillies to the World Series
-
Sports2 years agoGame 1 of WS least-watched in recorded history
-
Sports3 years agoButton battles heat exhaustion in NASCAR debut
-
Sports3 years agoMLB Rank 2023: Ranking baseball’s top 100 players
-
Sports4 years ago
Team Europe easily wins 4th straight Laver Cup
-
Environment3 years agoJapan and South Korea have a lot at stake in a free and open South China Sea
-
Environment1 year agoHere are the best electric bikes you can buy at every price level in October 2024