Israel to destroy Hamas members, bring back hostages: PM Benjamin Netanyahu

"There is no place in Gaza that we cannot reach. ... We will get there, defeat Hamas and bring home our hostages — these are our two holy missions," Netanyahu said during a visit to Israel’s training base in Zikim.

He said that Israeli forces would get to every Hamas militant in every corner of the Gaza Strip.

The prime minister also said that he held another phone conversation with US President Joe Biden on Tuesday, adding that Israel “will destroy Hamas and achieve complete victory."

The United States earlier said it has intelligence information to believe that Hamas members run a command-and-control centre under the Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City.

"Hamas and the Palestinian — Palestinian Islamic Jihad — PIJ — members operate a command-and-control node from Al-Shifa in Gaza City," National Security spokesman John Kirby told reporters.

"They have stored weapons there, and they’re prepared to respond to an Israeli military operation against that facility," Kirby said.

The Israel Defence Forces earlier in the day said its troops are carrying out a precise and targeted operation against Hamas members in a specified area in the Al-Shifa Hospital.

In a statement posted on X, IDF said: "The IDF is conducting a ground operation in Gaza to defeat Hamas and rescue our hostages. Israel is at war with Hamas, not with the civilians in Gaza."

Meanwhile, Kirby has called for the protection of hospitals and patients.

"Now, to be clear, we do not support striking a hospital from the air, and we do not want to see a firefight in the hospital where innocent people, helpless people, sick people are simply trying to get the medical care that they deserve — not to be caught in a crossfire.  Hospitals and patients must be protected," he said.