Netanyahu vows to ‘do our best’ to evacuate Rafah ahead of invasion: ‘They will have the opportunity to leave’

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed that civilians in Rafah will “have the opportunity to leave” ahead of Israel’s invasion of the city.

President Biden’s administration has repeatedly warned that the U.S. would not approve of any Rafah operation without a clear plan for protecting civilians in the city. Netanyahu argued in a Monday morning appearance on “Fox & Friends” that the Israeli military is setting the “gold standard” for protecting civilians while fighting terrorists embedded in populations.

“I can tell you that Hamas will be doing everything in their power to make sure that we don’t evacuate the civilians, because they actually try to stop them at gun point and often at gunfire, but that’s not gonna stop us,” Netanyahu said. “We’ll get the population out.”

Netanyahu went on to say that protecting civilians in Rafah is also an Israeli position, not just an American one.

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“We’ll do our best to get as many of them out as possible,” he added. “They will have the opportunity to leave.”

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White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said on Sunday that the U.S. has yet to see a plan for protecting the civilians and providing them housing following the attack. Nevertheless, Netanyahu says the Israeli military has drafted a pair of plans to both protect civilians and eliminate the remaining Hamas battalions in Rafah.

Rafah is considered Hamas’ final stronghold in Gaza. It lies on the border between Gaza and Egypt and has been the sole thoroughfare for aid flowing into the region.

Netanyahu made clear that Israel is committed to an invasion of Rafah on Sunday, even if Hamas agrees to a hostage exchange.

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“If we have a deal, it will be delayed somewhat, but it will happen. If we don’t have a deal, we’ll do it anyway,” Netanyahu said of the Rafah operation.

The prime minister clarified on Monday that Hamas is making “outlandish” demands in hostage negotiations, but that if they lower their expectations to something Israel finds to be more reasonable, Netanyahu is ready to make a deal.