Russian general speaks about Israeli ground operation in Gaza

As a result of the Israeli ground operation, the Gaza Strip may disappear from the map of the world not just as a legal entity, but as a region with its inhabitants. It is hard to predict whether someone will be willing to rebuild it and whether the region is going to be suitable for life at all, retired FSB Major General Alexander Mikhailov believes.

"Israel declared almost everyone living in Gaza terrorists. There is a certain logic in this: there are massive underground communication systems there that Hamas could not build alone. Most likely, nearly all Gaza residents were involved in the construction," Alexander Mikhailov said in an interview with lenta.ru news website.

For the time being, there is no understanding of how exactly the conflict may end. It is only clear that the Israeli ground operation in the enclave will lead to heavy casualties on all sides, the retired general said.

"It's difficult to say what the Israelis will do with all this. I doubt that the Gaza Strip will remain as a subject at all — not even as a subject of law, but as a region with residents living in it. It remains unknown who is going to rebuild Gaza, and who is going to live there after this,” Mikhailov noted.