‘War of light against darkness’ – Israeli Defense Minister Gallant tours Gaza border

Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant toured the Gaza border on Sunday, speaking with the soldiers stationed there before a press briefing.

He promised that Israel's war with Hamas would permanently change the situation of the residents of southern Israel for the better.

Speaking with IDF soldiers in the Yiftach camp about the next phase of the war, Gallant said: “This is a war between the sons of light and the sons of darkness, and it will be deadly, but it will change the situation forever.”

[The phrase, "war of the sons of light and the sons of darkness" comes from the Dead Sea Scrolls, where it describes an apocalyptic battle between the faithful descendants of Israel and the powers of the world.]

“We will not sit quietly while they [Hamas] kill or kidnap Israeli civilians, children and women. We will get to all the terror infrastructure, tunnels, and Hamas terrorists – and we will not consider the mission complete until they [Hamas] are destroyed,” he stressed.

The overthrow of Hamas is among the four goals the newly formed Israeli war cabinet has determined and approved, Israel’s Kan news outlet reported on Sunday.

The goals are to overthrow of Hamas rule and the destruction of its military capability; remove the threat of terrorism from the Gaza Strip; put forth maximum effort to resolve the hostage situation; and protect Israel’s borders and its citizens.

Gallant also told the soldiers: “I investigated and assessed the events that have taken place over the past several days – especially on Saturday, October 7th. What I saw were the heroic actions of our male and female soldiers, civilian men and women – all these people shielded the State of Israel with their own bodies, and in doing so, they saved the lives of residents of nearby communities and cities.”

The IDF has so far confirmed the identities of 292 soldiers who lost their lives during the surprise assault by Hamas on Oct. 7, many of whom were not stationed at the border but rushed to the area as soon as they heard reports of the attack.

“The courage of the combat soldiers who fought with their bare hands, sometimes using grenades, sometimes collecting weapons from terrorists, or even bringing equipment from home on the spur of the moment – it has been extraordinary and impressive,” Gallant said.

“This is a war of light against darkness. We face a group that does not accept our existence here; they are brutal, having murdered our soldiers, children, civilians. The soldiers here, together with their friends in the Air Force, Intelligence Directorate and the Navy, will eliminate the Hamas [terrorist] organization,” he added.

Gallant is currently touring army bases throughout the country.

On Saturday, he visited the IDF Northern Command headquarters in Safed, amid repeated clashes this week with Hezbollah on Israel's northern border with Lebanon.

Gallant’s office said he “emphasized the defense efforts carried out by the forces in the area to protect the citizens and was briefed on the operations carried out to thwart terror groups and other terrorist targets.”