Netanyahu: We’ve Changed the Equation in the Gaza Strip

Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu said on Sunday that Israel had changed the equation in the face of Gaza.

“The IDF and the Shin Bet took out the entire leadership of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad and by doing so, fulfilled the goals of the mission in perfect form,” he said at the start of the weekly Cabinet meeting.

Members of the government praised the operation with Communications Minister Shlomo Karhi, himself a resident of the South, saying he hoped he would not have to sleep in a shelter any longer. National Security advisor Tzachi Hanegbi said quiet would be met with quiet, “but Israel would do everything necessary to protect its citizens.”

The ceasefire that was reached with the mediation of Egypt, came into effect at 10 pm. on Motzoei Shabbos but tensions along the border remain high, as terror factions eye a right-wing march in the Old City of Yerushalayim later in the week.

The annual event marking the anniversary of the unification of Yerushalayim after the Six-Day War, has prompted cross-border fighting in past years.

An end to the fighting brings back political challenges to the government, first of them, the need to pass a national budget bill before the end of May. The prime minister hopes to present the bill as early as next week.