GAZA CITY — The Israeli military said on Wednesday it has initiated the first steps of a major military campaign to take over Gaza City. Hamas strongly condemned this decision, and it raised doubts about the future of ceasefire talks that are still going on.
Brigadier General Effie Defrin, a spokesperson for the Israeli military, said in a statement that forces are already working on the edges of the city, which he called a “stronghold” for the terrorist group. Defrin said that Hamas is now a “battered and bruised” guerilla army. Defense Minister Israel Katz has given the go-ahead for the enlarged operation, which will call up 60,000 reservists and keep 20,000 active-duty soldiers on duty longer.
Hamas said the news showed “a blatant disregard for the efforts made by the mediators” to reach a settlement for a truce and the release of hostages. The militant organization said that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was “obstructing” any deal to keep up the “brutal war against innocent civilians in Gaza City.”
The fresh attack comes at a very important time for peace talks. Reports say that Hamas agreed to a ceasefire agreement on Monday that would stop the fighting for 60 days and free at least 10 living Israeli detainees and some dead bodies. But Israel hasn’t publicly said anything about the arrangement yet, and some officials are said to be insisting that all remaining hostages be freed.
On October 7, 2023, Hamas attacked Israel, killing almost 1,200 people and taking 251 people captive. This started the battle. The Gaza health ministry says that since then, Israel’s military assaults in Gaza have killed more than 62,000 Palestinians. The Israeli military said that 27 of the initial 251 hostages are dead and 49 are still thought to be in Gaza.
Israel also given the go-ahead for a controversial settlement project in the occupied West Bank that would practically split the territory in two. Bezalel Smotrich, the far-right finance minister, praised the decision as a measure to “erase” the idea of a future Palestinian state. He said, “Every settlement, every neighborhood, every housing unit is another nail in the coffin of this dangerous idea.”