The head of the Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT), Major General Ghassan Alian, addressed the public in the Gaza Strip on Tuesday in a video posted to his Facebook account.
In the video, Alian, who is a member of Israel's Druze community, spoke in Arabic.
"The IDF is fighting Hamas, and the IDF will weaken Hamas," Alian said. "Hamas brought war upon you while its leadership spends time in spas in hotels or hides underground in tunnels. Hamas and Islamic Jihad have betrayed you and abandoned you to your fate. Humanitarian aid exists in the southern part of the strip – food, water, and shelters – and it will continue. For your sake and for the sake of your children, distance yourselves from Hamas."
Ghassan, as the head of COGAT, is one the highest ranking Druze members of the IDF.