end of the thread: "In additional comments carried by the Jerusalem Post and Times of Israel, Katz says:

1. Hamas operatives are almost entirely not engaging Israeli troops on the ground. Amid all of the new operations in Gaza in the past weeks, the IDF has only reported one incident of troops coming under fire.

2. Katz said he believed that reaching a new captives deal with Hamas was “more likely than it was before” because of the new IDF offensive, which he said was pressuring the Palestinian resistance group.

3. Katz said that though during the ceasefire, Hamas was only willing to release one living Israeli prisoner to continue any deal that did not include an Israeli promise to end the war, following the renewed hostilities and the establishment of the Morag Corridor, Hamas has upped its offer of captives for such a temporary ceasefire to five and now eight living captives. (Katz is referring here to the new Egyptian proposal, which reports do not indicate Hamas has accepted yet)

4. ⁠“Moving the population, capturing territory, the continued humanitarian blockade, all of these bring strong pressure on Hamas to release the hostages. I hope that this pressure, alongside the powerful IDF activities, will work, and we will return to the path of releasing the hostages,” he said.

5. Regarding the growing humanitarian crisis in Gaza, after Israel stopped allowing the entry of humanitarian aid on March 2, Katz claimed: “There are no shortages in Gaza, and there is no intention to reopen.”

6. Katz said that if a captives deal happens, the IDF’s current offensive would stop “immediately.”

7. IDF, he said, is still preparing for “the big move,” which would involve drafting numerous reservists to defeat Hamas. “This will happen eventually.”