JERUSALEM/BEIRUT/BERLIN - Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Wednesday that all areas of the Gaza Strip will be under Israeli security control and Hamas will be defeated by the end of the ongoing "Operation Gideon's Chariots".

Netanyahu described the operation, which he said began on Saturday, as the "final phase" of Israel's military campaign. That campaign was launched following a Hamas-led attack on October 7, 2023, that killed about 1,200 people in Israel.

"Our forces are landing powerful blows that will get stronger against Hamas strongholds that still exist in Gaza," Netanyahu stated, adding the operation was meant to "complete the war, the work" in the Strip.

Netanyahu also said that Mohammed Sinwar, Hamas' military leader and the younger brother of former Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, was "apparently" killed in a recent Israeli airstrike in southern Gaza. There has been no official confirmation of Mohammed Sinwar's death from either Israeli or Hamas sources.

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The prime minister confirmed that a May 13 strike on the European Hospital in Khan Younis was aimed at Sinwar. According to Palestinian officials, the attack caused extensive damage and heavy casualties. The Gaza-based health authorities said at least six people were killed and 40 others injured in the strike.

Netanyahu also outlined four key conditions for ending the broader offensive: the release of all Israeli hostages, the removal of Hamas leadership from Gaza, the group's complete disarmament, and the implementation of the controversial plan proposed by US President Donald Trump. Trump's plan, proposing American control over Gaza and the ethically questionable relocation of Palestinian residents to third countries, has ignited widespread regional and international condemnation.

Israel is also coordinating with the United States on a new aid delivery system intended to prevent Hamas from diverting humanitarian supplies. The plan, Netanyahu said, involves three stages: facilitating basic aid through established organizations, deploying distribution centers run by US private companies, and establishing a Hamas-free "sterile zone" in northern Gaza for direct aid distribution.

No timeline was provided for the implementation of the aid plan, which has drawn criticism from Palestinian officials who see it as a means for Israel to consolidate control over the enclave while sidelining the United Nations. The UN has publicly opposed the proposed system.

"We do not accept a proposal and a plan that does not live up to the core fundamental humanitarian principles of impartiality, neutrality, and independent delivery of aid," said UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs spokesperson Jens Laerke in Geneva earlier this month.

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The Gaza-based health authorities said on Wednesday that hundreds of Palestinians have been killed in the first five days of the latest operation, adding that the total Palestinian death toll since October 2023 has reached 53,655.  

The Israeli military said another salvo of rockets was launched from the Gaza Strip toward Israel on Wednesday night but fell short and landed within the enclave.

The latest barrage, consisting of three rockets, triggered warning sirens in the Israeli border communities of Netiv HaAsara and Zikim. No injuries or damage were reported.

"Three projectiles were identified from the northern Gaza Strip. The projectiles did not cross into Israeli territory and fell in the Gaza Strip," the military said in a statement.

The Israeli military also said it launched a drone strike in southern Lebanon on Wednesday, killing a commander in Hezbollah's elite Radwan force.

The military said the strike was carried out in the Yater area, without specifying the commander's name.

Meanwhile, Lebanon's official National News Agency (NNA), citing Khalil Kourani, head of Yater Municipality, said the dead was a citizen identified as Ali Hassan Abdel Latif Sweidan, who was targeted when he was clearing the rubble from his home using his excavator.

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Earlier in the day, the Israeli military claimed to have killed Hussein Nazih Barji, a Hezbollah operative involved in the group's weapons development program, during an Israeli drone strike in the Tyre area in southern Lebanon.

The NNA confirmed the attack, but did not say if the dead was a member of Hezbollah.

European countries condemn Israel

As Israel escalates its military campaign in the Gaza Strip, a growing number of European countries are voicing strong criticism and calling for concrete consequences. The mounting humanitarian crisis has prompted Europe to reconsider its political and economic ties with Israel.

Israeli forces allegedly fired on Wednesday near a group of foreign diplomats visiting Jenin, in the West Bank.

Italy summoned the Israeli ambassador to Rome on Wednesday over the "dramatic" situation in Gaza and the Jenin incident, according to Italy's ANSA news agency.    Lithuania has called for Israel's immediate investigation of Wednesday's incident, while Germany said it strongly condemns this unprovoked fire.

Seventeen of the European Union's (EU) 27 foreign ministers on Tuesday backed a Dutch proposal to review the EU-Israel Association Agreement. Following a meeting of the bloc's foreign ministers, EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said that there is a "strong majority" in favour of reviewing Article 2 of the agreement, which has been in force since 2000, and stipulates that cooperation must be based on "respect for human rights".

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"It is high time for the European External Action Service and the European Commission to prepare an opinion and follow-up measures in the face of Israel's blatant violation of the terms of the Association Agreement. Finally, the overwhelming majority of EU countries have joined this call," Slovenia's Prime Minister Robert Golob was quoted as saying on the social media platform X on Wednesday.

In Britain, Foreign Secretary David Lammy announced on Tuesday that Britain has suspended trade negotiations with Israel over its Gaza blockade. Lammy also said the Israeli ambassador had been summoned.

Addressing Parliament on Tuesday, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said, "The level of suffering, innocent children being bombed again, is utterly intolerable", and went on to say Britain and their French and Canadian allies are "horrified by the escalation from Israel".

Finnish President Alexander Stubb, Prime Minister Petteri Orpo, and Foreign Minister Elina Valtonen underscored the urgent need to ensure unrestricted humanitarian access to the enclave.

Austria calls for "a realistic solution in accordance with international law with the participation of the Palestinian Authority and the international community".

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Slovakia views it absolutely necessary to open a corridor in order to provide humanitarian aid to civilians in the Gaza Strip, Slovak Foreign Affairs Minister Juraj Blanar said Tuesday in Brussels following the EU's Foreign Affairs Council session.

Lithuanian Foreign Minister Kestutis Budrys has called the existing humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip "tragic" and said it needs to be resolved through talks with Israel.

Sanctions on table

Britain, France and Canada said on Monday that "if Israel does not cease the renewed military offensive and lift its restrictions on humanitarian aid", they will take further concrete actions.

In a joint statement, the three countries said that these actions could include targeted sanctions. They described the recent Israeli escalations in Gaza as "wholly disproportionate", and emphasized that the three countries will not stand by "while the Netanyahu government pursues these egregious actions".

In response, Netanyahu hit back by saying that British PM Starmer and his allies have offered Hamas a "huge prize", calling on "all European leaders" to follow US President Donald Trump's vision for ending the conflict.