In light of recent rocket attacks, defense ministry warns that Israel will not tolerate fire on its cities and communities.
Israel won\’t "allow anyone to disrupt the lives" of its citizens, Defense Minister cautioned on Monday, in response to a number of recent rocket attacks from the Gaza Strip carried out by an al-Qaida-affiliated organization.
Ya\’alon spoke at an awards ceremony held for reserves unit at the home of President Reuven Rivlin in Jerusalem. The ceremony was attended by IDF Chief of Staff Lt.-Gen. Gadi Esienkot.
Ya\’alon said that "in recent days we received another reminder about the complexity of the situation in the Gaza Strip, a hostile entity controlled by a murderous terrorist organization, Hamas, which is also challenged by terror gangs affiliated to the global jihad."
Faced with this situation, Israel is pursuing a "determined and decisive policy, but also one that is measured and responsible," Ya\’alon said. Israel struck Gazan terror organizations hard last summer during Operation Protective Edge, and "if we are required to, and we are continued to be challenged, we will not hesitate to act with similar force in the future," Ya\’alon said.
Ya\’alon warned that Israel will not tolerate fire on its cities and communities, and told terror organizations to "refrain from continuing to test us, as just last summer we proved our ability to strike Gazan terror organizations in an unprecedented manner. We will not be tolerant towards attempts to challenge us."
Addressing the reservists who received awards for excellence, Ya\’alon said, "You, the commanders and your units, will be part of any war in the future, and our responsibility as the leadership is to make sure you are ready for any scenario."