Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Sunday he had approved a military operation plan against the southern Gaza city of Rafah, which has attracted international attention because half of Gaza’s population is fleeing the war there.
Netanyahu told a news conference that the Israeli military was ready to evacuate civilians and provide humanitarian aid. But as with previously announced plans for an Israeli offensive in Rafah, there are no details on where Palestinians can safely go.
Israel’s offensive aimed at defeating the Hamas terror group has left much of Gaza in ruins. Many Palestinians who have taken refuge in Rafah travel there from other parts of Gaza to seek safety.
Israel’s main ally, the United States, as well as other governments and the United Nations, have expressed concern about the humanitarian catastrophe in Rafah if Israel proceeds with its plans.
Netanyahu reiterated on Sunday that Israel sees no other way to achieve its goals.
Netanyahu said: “This will take time, but it will be done.” We will enter Rafah, and we will eliminate the Hamas camp there, and the reason is simple: there is no victory without entering Rafah, and without eliminating the Hamas camp there, There is no victory for the Hamas camp. This is a fundamental part of the war objectives, which also include the repatriation of all our hostages. “
The Prime Minister spoke shortly before undergoing successful hernia surgery on Sunday night.
World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus posted on the X website on Sunday that an Israeli airstrike on the Al-Aqsa Hospital in Gaza killed four people and injured 17 others.
Tedros called on Israel to stop attacks on hospitals in the enclave and “protect patients, medical staff and the humanitarian mission.”
The WHO chief wrote that the attack on the tent camp on the hospital grounds was witnessed by a WHO team that was conducting a humanitarian mission there and was assessing needs in northern Gaza and collecting incubators, adding: “WHO All staff members have been identified. “
They have been taking refuge in the area after fighting forced thousands to flee their homes.
The Israeli military said on Sunday it had carried out an attack on a terrorist commander who was operating in a hospital courtyard.
Israel launched airstrikes in Gaza on Sunday as ceasefire talks between Israel and Hamas resumed in Cairo.
Tens of thousands of anti-government protesters staged three days of protests in front of the Knesset in Jerusalem from Sunday to Tuesday, calling for Israel to reach a deal with Hamas, release dozens of hostages and demand Netanyahu’s resignation. and appointed a general. election. The protest was the largest anti-government demonstration since Israel launched war in Gaza last October.
“I am working day and night with my negotiating team and cabinet to free all our hostages,” Netanyahu said at a news conference on Sunday. “I am doing this while balancing the necessary pressure on Hamas. and possible flexibility in negotiations.”
Netanyahu also dismissed calls for elections, saying it would only delay efforts to free the hostages and “paralyze Israel for six months.”
Netanyahu’s approval ratings, already weakened by Israel’s domestic judicial crisis, have fallen further since October 7, with successive polls showing a lack of confidence in his leadership and that he will be replaced if elections are held. Defeat many centrist rivals.
Fighting in Gaza continues despite the United Nations Security Council passing a resolution last week calling for an immediate ceasefire between Israel and Hamas and the release of all hostages held by the armed group.
As the war approaches six months, the United States, Qatar and Egypt have been working to mediate another ceasefire and the release of hostages since the first in November.
Netanyahu on Friday approved the resumption of ceasefire talks with Hamas.
However, an official told Reuters on Sunday that Hamas would not attend the talks in Cairo as it awaited word from mediators on whether Israel would make a new offer.
Hamas has previously proposed a gradual ceasefire process during which all remaining hostages would be released in exchange for an end to the war, a full Israeli withdrawal from Gaza, the opening of borders to aid and reconstruction and the release of hundreds of Palestinians. Palestinian prisoners, including senior militants serving life sentences.
Netanyahu called Hamas’s terms delusional and pledged to resume the Israeli offensive after the hostages were released and to continue fighting until the armed group was eliminated.
The current conflict began on October 7, when Hamas attacked Israel, killing 1,200 people and taking about 250 hostages, according to Israeli statistics. Hamas, designated a terrorist organization by the United States, Britain and the European Union, is still believed to be holding about 100 hostages, as well as the remains of about 30 others.
Israel’s retaliatory campaign to destroy Hamas has killed more than 32,000 people, mostly women and children, and injured more than 70,000, according to the Health Ministry in Hamas-controlled Gaza. Israel said a third of those killed were militants.
Information for this report was provided in part by The Associated Press and Reuters.
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