Israel to seize parts of Gaza as military operation expands

By James Mackenzie

Israel announced a major expansion of military operations in Gaza on Wednesday, saying large areas of the enclave would be seized and added to its security zones, accompanied by large-scale evacuations of the population.

In a statement, Defence Minister Israel Katz said evacuations would take place from areas where there was fighting, while urging Gazans to eliminate Hamas and return Israeli hostages as the only way to end the war.

He said the operation would clear out militants and infrastructure "and seize large areas that will be added to the security zones of the State of Israel".

The Israeli military had already issued evacuation warnings to Gazans living around the southern city of Rafah and towards the city of Khan Younis, telling them to move to the Al-Mawasi area on the shore, previously designated a humanitarian zone.

The Palestinian civil defence agency said at least 12 bodies had been recovered by its teams in Khan Younis after a wave of airstrikes was reported overnight, and Palestinian radio reported that the area around Rafah was almost completely empty following the evacuation orders.

At the site of a strike in Khan Younis, Rida al-Jabbour held up a tiny shoe and pointed at a blood-spattered wall as she related how a neighbour had been killed along with her three-month-old baby, their bodies dismembered by the blast.

"From the moment the strike occurred we have not been able to sit or sleep or anything," she said, describing how rescue workers were unable to separate the remains of those killed.

BUFFER ZONE

Katz's statement did not make clear how much land Israel intended to seize or whether the move represented a permanent annexation of territory, which would add further pressure on a population in Gaza already living in one of the most crowded areas in the world.

According to the Israeli rights group Gisha, Israel has already taken control of some 62 square kilometres or around 17% of the total area of Gaza, as part of a buffer zone around the edges of the enclave.

Seizing the buffer zone, which contains infrastructure including wells, sewage pumping stations, and wastewater treatment facilities as well as a significant part of Gaza's agricultural land, would also increase pressure on the enclave's ability to sustain itself.

At the same time, Israeli leaders have said they plan to facilitate voluntary departure of Palestinians from the enclave, after U.S. President Donald Trump called for it to be permanently evacuated and redeveloped as a coastal resort under U.S. control.

Katz's remarks came after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu repeated calls for Hamas to disarm and said the application of military pressure was the best way to get back the remaining 59 hostages.

Israeli leaders have been encouraged by signs of protest in Gaza against Hamas, the militant group which has controlled the enclave since 2007, and the expanded operation appeared at least partly aimed at increasing civilian pressure on its leaders.

"I call on the residents of Gaza to act now to eliminate Hamas and return all the kidnapped," Katz said in his statement. "This is the only way to end the war."

WAR EXPANDS

Israel resumed airstrikes on Gaza last month and sent ground troops back in, after two months of relative calm following the conclusion of a U.S.-backed truce to allow the exchange of hostages held by Hamas for Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails.

Hundreds of Palestinians have been killed since the resumption of the strikes and Israel has also cut off aid to the enclave, saying much of it was taken by Hamas.

Efforts led by Qatari and Egyptian mediators to get talks aimed at ending the war back on track have so far failed to make progress and the military's return to Gaza has fuelled protests in Israel by families and supporters of some of the hostages.

On Wednesday, the Hostage Families' Forum said it was "horrified" to wake up to news of the expanded operation.

As the operation in Gaza has escalated, Israel has also hit targets in southern Lebanon and Syria, with a strike on a Hezbollah commander in the southern suburbs of Beirut on Tuesday that further strained fraying ceasefire agreements which largely halted fighting in January.

In addition, Israeli troops are still carrying out a major operation in the occupied West Bank.

Israel invaded Gaza following the devastating attack on communities in southern Israel by thousands of Hamas-led gunmen that killed 1,200 people according to Israeli tallies, and saw 251 taken as hostages into Gaza.

The Israeli campaign has killed more than 50,000 Palestinians, according to Palestinian health officials, and ravaged the Gaza Strip, forcing almost the entire population of 2.3 million from their homes, leaving hundreds of thousands in tents and improvised shelters.