For the first time, Israel has set a timetable for an upcoming ground offensive in Rafah, which could be part of an effort to pressure Hamas to reach a qualitative deal.
Israel demanded that Hamas release the hostages held in Gaza before Ramadan, or face a ground offensive against Rafah. This is the first time that Israel has set a timetable for the upcoming military operation in the city。This looming ground offensive has become a source of tension between Israel and the United States.
"The world must know, and Hamas leaders must know, that if our hostages do not return home during Ramadan, the fighting will continue and expand to Rafah," Benny Gantz, a member of Israel's wartime cabinet, said on Sunday. ”
The Muslim holy month of Ramadan, which will begin around March 10, has been the point of outbreak of violence in Israel and the Palestinian territories in recent years
In recent weeks, Israel has launched airstrikes on the southern Gaza city of Rafah and threatened to send troops. Rafah is a refuge for more than 1 million Palestinians, while further north, around Khan Younis, fierce fighting continues. Israel says the two cities are Hamas's last stronghold in the Gaza Strip, where Israel believes the hostages are being held. Last week, Israel rescued two hostages from a residential area in Rafah.
Biden has warned Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu not to operate without a credible plan to ensure the safety of civilians in Rafah, which had a pre-war population of 300,000.
Netanyahu said over the weekend that he had spoken with Biden and other world leaders. Netanyahu said: "I told them unequivocally:Israel will fight until complete victory。This also includes operations in Rafah, after we have allowed civilians in the fighting areas to evacuate to safe areas, of course. "Aid organizations and civilians living in Gaza say people have nowhere to go, they have been displaced by the war and are moving south to Rafah on Israeli instructions.
Asked about the evacuation plan, Netanyahu said: "There is a lot of space north of Rafah. ”
According to analysts,Giving Ramadan a deadline could be part of Israel's efforts to pressure Hamas to reach a quality deal. In the Islamic calendar, the beginning of Ramadan is determined based on the appearance of the new moon, which means that the beginning and end of the month can only be estimated in advance.
During Ramadan, Israel usually eases restrictions on Palestinian Muslims in East Jerusalem and the West Bank visiting the Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem. The mosque sits atop the Temple Mount, the holiest temple in Judaism. However, violent clashes between Palestinians and Israeli police during this period in recent years have had an impact on the commemoration of Ramadan.
A Hamas spokesman did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Hamas senior Osama Hamdan said this in an interview with Iranian state-run television on MondayHamas is not feeling as much pressure to reach a deal before Ramadan as Israel does, the faithful will gather in Jerusalem during the month of Ramadan.
According to the Israeli authorities,Israel is pursuing a dual goalThe first is to expel Hamas from Gaza, and the other is to release dozens of hostages who are still being held in southern Israel after the October 7 attack. According to Israeli authorities, the attack killed 1,200 people, most of them civilians. Health authorities in Gaza said on Monday that more than 290,000 people were killed. This figure does not distinguish between civilians and combatants.
On Sunday, Netanyahu said he hoped an agreement to release the hostages would be reached as soon as possible. "But whether an agreement is reached or not, we have to complete the task to achieve total victory," he said.
Some 130 hostages taken in the Hamas attack on 7 October remain in Gaza, at least 30 of whom have been killed. However, Israel has shared an assessment with the United States and Egypt** that the death toll could be as high as 50. According to Israel, most of the remaining hostages are Israelis, including dual nationals.
The families of the hostages have increased the pressure on the **, demanded that they negotiate freely and criticized Israel's decision not to send a delegation to Cairo for ceasefire negotiations. On Monday, they were outside their residence in Gantz**.
Gantz came out and responded: ".Most likely, the hostages will be released through an agreementIf there were other options, while keeping the hostages safe, we would do so. ”
Any ground offensive on Rafah could seriously hamper further assistance to Gazans in the area, where there is already a food crisis. Ghada Zaki, 23, who lives in the Al-Remal community of Rafah, said she and her family had run out of flour and animal feed, and they were all starving. She saidHunger and desperation have led to fighting among Gazans for relief supplies.
Israel has been warning for weeks that it is preparing to enter Rafah, where more than half of the population of the Gaza Strip has taken refuge in about 20 per cent of the area. The planned ground offensive against Rafah has intensified the international criticism that Israel has faced because of the potential for harm to civilians. The Rafah crossing between Egypt and Gaza is one of two entry points for aid into the territory, and ground operations could further hamper the already stalled delivery of food, water and medical supplies.
Gantz also said on Monday that at the suggestion of security forces, in light of the conflict in the Gaza StripIsrael will take security measures during Ramadan.
Israeli far-right minister Itamar Ben-Gvir has called for maximum measures to keep Palestinians in the West Bank away from the Al-Aqsa Mosque. An aide to Ben-Gvir said he had proposed a complete ban on Palestinians from entering holy sites from the West Bank this month.
Israel***, which participated in the discussions, said Ben-Gvir's position had been rejected, but no final decision had been made on the level or nature of the restrictions.
The Israeli Prime Minister's Office said that "the Prime Minister made a balanced decision to allow freedom of worship to be achieved within the constraints of security needs determined by professionals," without elaborating.
At the same time,Tensions are growing on Israel's northern border with Lebanon, two Israeli airstrikes concentrated a warehouse and another unidentified target in an industrial zone in Lebanon. It was the worst attack in Lebanon since the start of the war in Gaza, with both strikes about 30 miles from the capital, Beirut.
The Israeli military said the two targets were the infrastructure sites of the militant group Allah and came after Allah fired drones into Israeli territory.
In Yemen,Iranian-backed Houthi rebels claimed to have attacked three merchant ships in less than 24 hours. Missile strikes on Sunday night forced the crew of a British bulk carrier to abandon ship for fear that the ship could sink, according to Vanguard Tech, a British security firm. The company said the U.S. bulk carrier Sea Champion was also hit twice in the Gulf of Aden on Monday morning with minor damage. The Houthis claimed responsibility for the attack, as well as that of another U.S. vessel.
Yemen's Houthis also said they shot down a U.S. MQ9 Reaper drone near the port of Hodeidah, which they control. The U.S. Command, which is responsible for U.S. military operations in the Middle East, did not respond to a request for comment. **The command said on Saturday that it intercepted an unmanned underwater vehicle sent by the Houthis.