Injured Israeli soldier who returned from Gaza says he wants to ‘bring back the peace’
TEL AVIV — An Israeli soldier who was evacuated out of Gaza after he was injured by mortar fire during ground operations believes the military is doing everything it can to “bring back our hostages and end the war.”
Speaking from a hospital bed, where he has been receiving care since his evacuation in early November, Sgt. First Class Ofer said his unit was “amongst the first forces” to enter the enclave. In early November, he said he was injured in mortar fire that killed a member of his unit.
The soldier, who spoke on the condition that his last name be withheld said he believed he was doing “what you’re supposed to do … You’re making a way back to peace, for us and for the other side, for the civilians of the other side.” Asked how he feels about mounting criticisms of the Israeli military’s offensive in Gaza, which has seen more than 18,700 people killed in the enclave, he said it wasn’t his “job or decision … to dissect all of the different opinions.”
“I work in my operational zone, which is to bring back the peace with my unit and everyone’s forces to bring back our hostages, and end the war,” he said. “That’s what I do, and leave the other higher ground to people who need to do this.”
Sullivan to meet with Palestinian Authority president tomorrow
Jake Sullivan, the White House’s national security advisor, will travel to Ramallah tomorrow to meet with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, according to a senior administration official.
Sullivan is expected to discuss the Palestinian Authority’s role in setting the conditions to ensure another Oct. 7 attack doesn’t happen again, as well as to reiterate the U.S. support for Palestinians, the official said.
This follows what the official described as a good, “substantive,” discussion between Sullivan and Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu today in Tel Aviv. The meeting also…
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