Jerusalem, 22 September, 2026 (TPS-IL) — Defense Minister Israel Katz warned on Tuesday that Hamas may seek to kidnap Israeli soldiers or civilians, issuing a stark threat of retaliation during a memorial ceremony for the fallen of the Yom Kippur War.
“If one Israeli soldier or citizen is kidnapped,” Katz said, “the entire city of Gaza, with its homes and terror towers, will be evacuated southward,” along with its roughly one million residents.
He said Gaza City would then be treated in the same manner as Rafah, Beit Hanoun and other areas of Gaza already targeted by Israel.
Katz said the response would continue until the kidnapped Israeli was returned.
Opposition leader Avigdor Liberman criticized the warning, saying that continued intelligence about Hamas kidnapping plans, nearly three years after October 7, demonstrates that Hamas has not been defeated and security has not been restored.