Israel's 3-phase offensive and aim of ending ‘responsibility for life' in Gaza | Top points
Israel said it would "soon" receive an order for an imminent ground offensive in the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip. The Israeli defense minister outlined the three phases of the Gaza offensive.
The Israeli defense minister on Friday outlined the three phases of the Gaza offensive, with the last phase aimed at “removal of Israel’s responsibility for life in the Gaza strip”.
The first stage was the current military operation meant to destroy Hamas's infrastructure, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, adding that the intermediate phase would include "operations at lower intensity" eliminating "pockets of resistance".
"The third phase will require the removal of Israel’s responsibility for life in the Gaza strip, and the establishment of a new security reality for the citizens of Israel," the minister was quoted as saying by Reuters.
Meanwhile, Israeli military officials said the war, which now entered its 14th day, would go on for "long" and the fighting would be "difficult" and "intense". However, they expressed optimism that Israel would win against Hamas.
Here's a quick recap of developments in Israel-Hamas war
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visited a group of soldiers stationed at Golani near the Gaza border and boosted their morale. He said Israel would win with "all our might".
“All of Israel is behind you and we are going to heavily strike our enemies so that we can achieve victory,” Netanyahu was quoted as saying by the Times of Israel.
Major General Yaron Finkelman, the head of the Israel Defence Force (IDF) Southern Command, said the expected ground offensive would be “long and intense”.
“This war was forced on us, with a cruel enemy that harmed us greatly. But we stopped them and we are striking them heavily,” Finkelman told troops near the Gaza border.
In a joint operation by the IDF and naval forces, Mabduh Shaalabi, a Hamas special naval forces operative, was killed. In a statement, the Israeli military said Shaalabi was involved in terror attacks against Israel from the sea.
Shaalabi was targeted while in an operational command centre, the statement said.
As the war rages on, the death toll in Gaza continued to rise. So far, 3,859 people have died since Hamas launched a surprise attack on Israel on October 7 and Israel's counteroffensive against the armed group, the Palestinian Health Ministry said.
Additionally, 12,493 people have been injured, including 3,983 children and 3,300 women, Health Ministry spokesperson Dr Ashraf Al-Qidra was quoted as saying by CNN.
A Greek Orthodox church in the Gaza Strip was hit overnight by an Israeli air strike, Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem said. While the Palestinian health officials said 16 people were killed in the attack, there was no word from the Church on a death toll.
The Israeli military said a part of the church was damaged in a strike on a militant command centre.
In his address to the nation from the Oval Office, US President Joe Biden launched an urgent mission to get Americans behind billions more dollars in spending for its allies Israel and Ukraine.
Drawing a link between the Israel-Hamas war and the Russia-Ukraine war, Biden said both Hamas and Russian President Vladimir Putin wanted to "annihilate a neighbouring democracy".
His address came about 20 hours after returning from a visit to Israel where he met Netanyahu and voiced the US's support for the Jewish nation amid the war with Hamas.
Israeli airstrikes continued to pound Gaza on Thursday while Hamas terrorists engaged in an intense rocket fire towards Israeli cities and towns, including Tel Aviv.
Rockets were fired in the late afternoon and evening toward cities including Holon, Rishon Lezion, Beersheba, Sderot, Ashdod and Ashkelon, as well as Gaza border communities, the Times of Israel reported.
In Sderot in southern Israel, two rockets landed, causing damage. But, there were no reports of injuries.
The Crown Prince and Prime Minister of Saudi Arabia, Mohammed bin Salman (MBS), has called for the establishment of a Palestinian State along the 1967 borders. He said that Saudi Arabia rejected targeting of civilians, and stressed the importance of adhering to international humanitarian law, as well as the need to stop “military operations against civilians and infrastructure that affects their daily lives”.
“The conditions must be created for the return of stability and the achievement of lasting peace that will ensure a just solution to establish a Palestinian state within 1967 borders in order to achieve security and prosperity for all," MBS said on Friday.
Russia on Friday urged its citizens to refrain from travelling to Israel, the Palestinian territories, Lebanon or Jordan.
As the humanitarian crisis worsened in Gaza, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Friday visited the Rafah border crossing. He said aid trucks needed to move as quickly as possible from Egypt into the besieged Palestinian enclave of Gaza to alleviate a humanitarian crisis.
Gaza is running short of fuel, food, water and medicine after Israel retaliated with air strikes following an October 7 Hamas attack.
"These trucks are not just trucks - they are a lifeline, they are the difference between life and death to many people in Gaza," Guterres said as he arrived in Egypt in a push to get the trucks moving.
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