(NewsNation) — As violence rages on in Israel, Hamas and a smaller Islamic Jihad group claim to have taken at least 130 people captive from inside Israel. Israel Defense Forces spokesperson Lt. Col. Jonathan Conricus tells NewsNation that he “cannot offer any words of support or any promises” to families of hostages.
“At this stage with this extremely delicate matter, I cannot offer any words of support or any promises. We’re dealing with a murderous organization that we know has no respect for human life,” Conricus told NewsNation host Leland Vittert on Sunday evening.
Conricus says the IDF is focused on clearing Hamas fighters out of Israel.
“What we’re doing is actively searching for the terrorists that are still inside Israel. We assess that almost 1,000 terrorists crossed from the Gaza Strip into Israel in this unprecedented strike against Israel. And out of those, we’ve been able to kill more than 400,” Conricus said, later adding: “We are still, at this moment, fighting in order to find the last Hamas terrorists.”
He continued: “We will do whatever is necessary to make sure that all of Israel is, of course, clear and that order can be restored.”
The Israeli government formally declared war Sunday to retaliate against Hamas for its surprise attack. At least 700 people have reportedly been killed in Israel and more than 400 have been killed in Gaza.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.