The Israeli military announced that it has initiated a ground operation in Shaboura, Rafah, located in southern Gaza, in recent hours.
Furthermore, it shared that it has intensified its efforts in southern Gaza while maintaining its operations in northern and central Gaza.
“In the last few hours, IDF (Israel Defense Forces) troops commenced ground activities in the Shabura area of Rafah. During this operation, the troops dismantled… terrorist infrastructure,” the army stated, adding that “at the same time, IDF forces are continuing their ground operations in northern and central Gaza.”
This announcement follows a statement from Gaza’s health ministry indicating that at least 91 Palestinians have died and many others have been injured due to airstrikes throughout the region after Israel resumed its bombing and ground operations.
“It is impossible not to be profoundly affected by the grim reality unfolding before our eyes,” Mr. Herzog expressed in a video message, notably refraining from mentioning Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu by name.
“It is unimaginable to resume combat while still striving to fulfill our sacred mission of bringing our hostages home,” Mr. Herzog remarked, whose position is primarily ceremonial.
Israel’s President Isaac Herzog
His unexpected statement also comes prior to a state budget vote anticipated later this month, where the government intends to increase taxes and reduce education and health funding while boosting spending in the ultra-Orthodox Jewish community—a proposal that has faced backlash as many in the ultra-Orthodox community do not serve in the military.
“Recently, thousands of reserve duty call-ups have been issued, and it is unfathomable to send our sons to the front lines while simultaneously promoting divisive and controversial initiatives that create deep divisions within our nation,” Mr. Herzog stated.
He urged decision-makers to “carefully consider each step and evaluate whether it strengthens national resilience,” criticizing the choice to resume hostilities in Gaza while Israeli hostages, some known to be alive, remain in captivity there.
Following two months of relative tranquility, Palestinians in Gaza were once again fleeing for their lives as Israel effectively abandoned the ceasefire, launching a renewed all-out air and ground campaign against Hamas, Gaza’s predominant Palestinian militant group.
Leaflet drops
Israeli aircraft distributed leaflets across residential areas, instructing residents to evacuate from Beit Lahiya, Beit Hanoun in the north, the Shejaia district in Gaza City, and areas on the eastern outskirts of Khan Younis in the south.
“War has returned, along with displacement and death; will we survive this phase?” lamented Samed Sami, 29, who fled Shejaia to establish a tent for his family in an open ground camp.
A day after deploying tanks into central Gaza, the Israeli military reported that it had also commenced ground operations in the northern part of the densely populated enclave, targeting the coastal area in Beit Lahiya.
While Hamas refrained from retaliation during the first two days of the renewed Israeli offensive, it later announced that its fighters had launched rockets into Israel.
The Israeli military confirmed that sirens were activated in the central region after projectiles were fired from Gaza.
Palestinian medics reported that Israeli strikes targeted multiple homes in both northern and southern Gaza.
With negotiations failing to resolve differences over terms for extending the ceasefire, the military resumed its aerial assaults on Gaza with a large bombing campaign on Tuesday, followed by a ground troop deployment the next day.
Residents inspect rubble after an Israeli strike destroyed a building in Khan Younis in Gaza
Over 500 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli strikes since Tuesday.
Earlier, the Israeli military indicated that its forces had been involved for the past 24 hours in what it described as an operation to broaden a buffer zone dividing northern and southern Gaza, known as the Netzarim corridor.
Israel instructed residents to avoid the Salahuddin road, Gaza’s primary north-south route, and recommended they travel along the coastal route instead.
On the first day of resumed airstrikes, more than 400 Palestinians were killed, marking one of the deadliest days in the 17-month conflict, with little relief thereafter.
Read more: ‘No one is safe in Gaza’, says UN Special Rapporteur. Taoiseach strongly condemns Israeli strikes on Gaza.
This week’s airstrikes, which have hindered Hamas’s efforts to restructure its administration in Gaza, resulted in the deaths of several key figures, including the de facto Hamas-appointed head of the Gaza government, the chief of security services, his aide, and the deputy head of the Hamas-run justice ministry.
The militant group condemned the Israeli ground operation and incursion into the Netzarim corridor as a “new and dangerous violation” of the ceasefire agreement.
In a statement, Hamas reaffirmed its commitment to the truce and urged mediators to “take responsibility.”
Hamas earlier called the ground operation into the Netzarim Corridor a ‘dangerous violation’
Current and former Israeli officials have indicated that a return to full-scale war could present complications for Israel, given diminishing public support and fatigue among military reservists.
Demonstrators have accused Mr. Netanyahu of prolonging the conflict for political motives, endangering the lives of remaining hostages.
A temporary first phase of the ceasefire concluded at the start of this month.
Hamas seeks to advance to an agreed second phase, during which Israel would be obligated to negotiate an end to the war and withdrawal of its forces from Gaza, with Israeli hostages still held there to be exchanged for Palestinian prisoners.
Israel has proposed only a temporary extension of the truce, cut off all supplies to Gaza, and announced the resumption of its military campaign to compel Hamas to release the remaining hostages.
Israeli troops reported firing upon Palestinians in vehicles.
The ceasefire had allowed Huda Junaid, her husband, and family to return to the site of their destroyed home to camp among the ruins.
However, they were compelled to flee once more, loading their few belongings onto a donkey cart in search of a new location to pitch their tent near a school.
“We desire neither war nor death. Enough is enough; we are fed up. There are no children left in Gaza; all of our children are gone, all of our relatives are gone,” she expressed.
Israel urged civilians in Gaza to leave areas it described as ‘combat zones’
Some Palestinians attempting to use the Salahuddin road reported seeing vehicles come under fire from Israeli soldiers moving towards Netzarim.
The fate of those in those vehicles remains unknown.
“Bulldozers shielded by tanks were heading west from the areas where they were stationed near the fence east of the Salahuddin road,” noted a taxi driver, who requested anonymity for fear of reprisal.
A Hamas official indicated that mediators had intensified their efforts with both conflicting parties, although no breakthroughs have occurred as of yet.
Some residents remarked that there were no indications of Hamas preparing on the ground to resume fighting.
Nevertheless, a representative from an allied militant group suggested that fighters, including those from Hamas, had been put on alert, awaiting further orders.
Fighters have also been instructed to refrain from using mobile phones.
The conflict erupted following an attack by Hamas militants on Israeli communities near the Gaza border in October 2023, resulting in the deaths of 1,200 people and the capture of more than 250 hostages, according to Israeli figures.
More than 49,000 Palestinians have perished in the ensuing conflict, as reported by Gaza’s health authorities, leaving much of the enclave in ruins.
