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Hamas agrees to Gaza ceasefire connection
The Israeli subject said it had called up an further 60,000 reservists and extended the work of 20,000 "as portion of the adjacent signifier of 'Operation Gideon's Chariot'" - the sanction of Israel's subject cognition successful Gaza.
Israel is preparing to motorboat an expanded subject cognition successful Gaza City, perchance successful the coming days, adjacent arsenic negotiators scramble to bring Israel and Hamas to a ceasefire aft 22 months of fighting.
It comes arsenic quality rights groups pass that a humanitarian situation could worsen successful Gaza, wherever astir residents person been displaced, immense neighborhoods prevarication successful ruins and communities are facing the menace of famine.
Palestinians inspect the tract of an overnight Israeli onslaught connected a location successful Gaza City connected August 20, 2025.
DAWOUD ABU ALKAS / REUTERS
An Israeli subject official, speaking connected the information of anonymity successful enactment with subject regulations, said the Israel Defense Forces volition beryllium operating successful parts of Gaza City wherever they person not yet operated and wherever they judge Hamas is inactive active.
The authoritative said Israeli troops are already operating successful the Zeitoun and Jabaliya neighborhoods of Gaza City to hole the groundwork for the expanded operation, which is expected to person support from the main of unit successful the coming days.
The IDF regards Gaza City arsenic Hamas' main subject and governing stronghold and Israeli troops volition again beryllium targeting Hamas' immense underground passageway network, the authoritative added.
Although Israel has targeted and killed overmuch of Hamas' elder leadership, parts of the militant radical are actively regrouping and carrying retired attacks, including launching rockets toward Israel, the authoritative said.
It remains unclear erstwhile the cognition volition begin, but it could beryllium a substance of days. The authoritative said the cognition was expected to past betwixt 4 to six months.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has consistently said the nonsubjective of the warfare is to unafraid the merchandise of the remaining hostages and guarantee Hamas and different militants tin ne'er again endanger Israel.
The planned offensive, archetypal announced earlier this month, has heightened planetary condemnation of Israel and fueled fears that it volition pb to different wide displacement of Palestinians.
Netanyahu said connected Aug. 9 that it would span parts of Gaza City and the cardinal camps [or for recently displaced people. Hundreds of thousands of displaced radical are sheltering successful the metropolis and it holds immoderate of the past remnants of captious infrastructure.
AP journalists saw tiny groups heading southbound from the metropolis this week, but however galore volition voluntarily fly remains unclear. Some said they were waiting to spot however events unfold earlier moving yet again, and galore importune obscurity is harmless from airstrikes.
The Israeli call-up comes arsenic a increasing run of exhausted reservists is accusing the authorities of perpetuating the warfare for governmental reasons and failing to bring location the remaining hostages.
The families of the hostages and erstwhile service and quality chiefs person besides expressed absorption to the expanded cognition successful Gaza City. Most of the families of the hostages privation an contiguous ceasefire and interest an expanded battle could imperil the instrumentality location of the 50 hostages inactive successful Gaza. Israel believes 20 are inactive alive.
The erstwhile chiefs are skeptical the extremity of wholly destroying Hamas is attainable. The erstwhile caput of Shin Bet, Israel's interior information agency, Yoram Cohen called it a "fantasy," saying that "if anyone imagines that we tin scope each violent and each pit and each weapon, and successful parallel bring our hostages location - I deliberation it is impossible."
The warfare began erstwhile Hamas carried retired a panic onslaught connected Israel connected Oct. 7, 2023, sidesplitting immoderate 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducting 251. Most of the hostages person been released successful ceasefires oregon different deals. Hamas says it volition lone escaped the remainder successful speech for a lasting ceasefire and an Israeli withdrawal.
Mediators and Hamas some said this week that Hamas leaders had agreed to cease-fire terms, though akin announcements person been made successful the past that did not pb to ceasefires.
An Israeli authoritative who spoke connected information of anonymity due to the fact that they were not authorized to talk to the media said Israel is successful changeless interaction with the mediators successful an effort to unafraid the merchandise of the hostages.
Netanyahu has repeatedly said helium volition reason a woody that doesn't see the "complete decision of Hamas."
More than 62,000 radical person been killed during Israel's 22-month offensive, Gaza's Health Ministry said connected Monday. The ministry is portion of the Hamas-run authorities and staffed by aesculapian professionals. The ministry does not accidental however galore of the dormant were civilians oregon combatants, but says women and children marque up astir fractional of them.
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