The Israel Defense Forces is warning citizens in the northern parts of Gaza to move south because of a pending invasion, but Hamas "has been putting roadblocks around the city of Gaza to prevent people from evacuating," Lt. Masha Michelson, a spokesperson for the Israel Defense Forces, said on Newsmax Friday.
"They're using them as human shields," Michelson told "Wake Up America." "Not only do they have over 100 of our Israel citizens to use as human shields right now, but also their own citizens, which for years have been used as human shields are still in Gaza and are being prevented from moving south."
She added that "nothing is confirmed" about an invasion, as "there are a lot of options on the table and invasion is certainly one of them."
Meanwhile, The Jerusalem Post reported Thursday that Hamas may have been planning last week's attack for six months, but Michelson refused to speculate that it had planned what Israel's response would be.
"I wouldn't presume to think the way Hamas terrorists think," she said. "All possibilities are on the table. Hamas is a terrorist organization and what they're planning is to cause as much damage to Israel as possible. What the IDF is now concentrating on is to make sure that Hamas has no ability to do that ever again."
Michelson also refused to comment on whether she thinks the war will spill beyond Israel's borders.
"I'm not the person to speak on that," she said. "I'm sure that the strategists, both military and in the government have all the factors that they need to know to make the right and informed decision regarding the steps going forward."
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Sandy Fitzgerald ✉
Sandy Fitzgerald has more than three decades in journalism and serves as a general assignment writer for Newsmax covering news, media, and politics.
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