Israeli opposition politician Gadi Eisenkot accused prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu of a 'strategic failure' in Gaza. (EPA Images pic)JERUSALEM: Israeli opposition politician Gadi Eisenkot, prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu's main rival in upcoming elections, vowed Thursday to end Hamas rule in Gaza if he wins office following the Oct 27 vote.
"Today I give a public commitment: from the moment I enter the prime minister's office, within 18 months Hamas will no longer rule the Gaza Strip," the leader of the centre-right Yashar party said at a press conference near the war-ravaged Palestinian territory.
He said he would achieve this either by implementing US president Donald Trump's ceasefire plan, which provides for the gradual disarmament of Hamas and a transfer of power, or through "creative operations" by Israel's military aimed at destroying the Palestinian movement's military wing.
