Key Points
- Israel’s military has escalated its assault on Gaza with new “extensive ground operations” in the north and south.
- The Gaza health ministry reported at least 67 Palestinians killed and 361 injured in the past 24 hours.
- It comes as diplomatic efforts to achieve a ceasefire remain at a standstill.
Israel’s military has announced “extensive ground operations” as part of its newly expanded campaign in the Gaza Strip, where rescuers reported dozens were killed in a wave of strikes.
The announcement came just hours after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu signalled Israel was open to a deal with Hamas that involved “ending the fighting” in the besieged Palestinian territory.
The military said over the past day, troops had “begun extensive ground operations throughout the northern and southern Gaza Strip”.
On Monday, the Gaza health ministry said at least 67 Palestinians had been killed and 361 injured in the last 24 hours.
Israel said its ramped-up campaign aims to free hostages and defeat Hamas, but as it got underway, Israel and the group were entering indirect talks in Qatar aimed at creating a deal.
In a statement over the weekend, Netanyahu’s office said: “The negotiation team in Doha is working to exhaust every possibility for a deal — whether according to the Witkoff framework or as part of ending the fighting.”
Steve Witkoff is the United States’ Middle East envoy who has been involved in previous discussions.
Netanyahu’s statement said such a deal “would include the release of all the hostages, the exile of Hamas terrorists, and the disarmament of the Gaza Strip”.
Last month, a Hamas spokesperson reiterated disarmament and continued occupation by Israeli forces are red lines, and that the group is seeking a permanent ceasefire.
Since Israel broke a two-month ceasefire in March and resumed its offensive, negotiations mediated by Qatar, Egypt and the US have failed to make a breakthrough.
Netanyahu has opposed ending the war without Hamas’ total defeat, while tens of thousands of Israelis have called on their leader to strike a peace deal to bring those held in Hamas captivity home.
A Hamas source familiar with the Doha negotiations said the group was willing “to release all Israeli hostages in one batch, provided that a comprehensive and permanent ceasefire agreement is reached”, but Israel “wants to release its prisoners in one batch or in two batches in exchange for a temporary truce”.
Air raid sirens sounded in southern Israel on Sunday, as the army said two projectiles were launched from Gaza, with one intercepted.
The military later issued an evacuation order for several parts of Gaza ahead of an attack, warning it would “launch a powerful strike on any area used for launching rockets”.
On the ground, Gaza civil defence spokesperson Mahmud Bassal told AFP 22 Palestinians were killed and at least 100 others wounded in a pre-dawn attack on tents sheltering displaced Palestinians in al-Mawasi in the southern Gaza Strip.
AFPTV footage showed people sifting through ruined shelters and rescuers treating the wounded.
“All my family members are gone. There is no-one left,” a distraught Warda al-Shaer said.
“The children were killed as well as their parents. My mother died too, and my niece lost her eye.”
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