Israeli troops move towards centre of Gaza refugee camp ahead of Rafah ground operation

Israeli troops advanced towards the centre of the Jabilia refugee camp in northern Gaza on Thursday, engaging militants in close-range encounters. In Rafah in the south, where hundreds of thousands of residents who fled the war remain in temporary shelters, soldiers remain poised to enter the centre of the city.

Israel faces pressure from the United States, Europe and the United Nations not to invade the city.

A military spokesperson confirmed that five soldiers were killed on Wednesday by Israeli tank fire in Jabilia, the latest incident of many “friendly fire” accidents during the Gaza war.

Defence minister Yoav Gallant, speaking on the Gaza border on Thursday, said additional forces will join the ground operation in Rafah.

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[ Netanyahu refuses to be drawn by Gallant’s Gaza gauntlet ]

He said a number of tunnels in the Rafah area have been destroyed, and more tunnels will be destroyed soon, adding that Hamas has now lost its ability to regain power.

“Hamas’ taps are running dry,” Mr Gallant said. “Hamas does not have reserves, it does not have the ability to produce weapons, it does not have supplies, it does not have armaments, and it does not have the ability to properly treat terrorists who are injured, and the meaning is that we are going to wear it down.”

According to the Hamas-run Gaza health ministry, more than 35,200 Palestinians have been killed since the war began. Israel says 1,200 people were killed and 253 hostages seized in the surprise Hamas attack on October 7th.

It says 132 hostages remain in Hamas captivity, although it is not known how many are alive.

According to Egyptian sources, Cairo has rejected an Israeli proposal for the two countries to co-ordinate the reopening of the Rafah crossing to Egypt and to manage its operation. Egypt insists the crossing should be managed only by Palestinians.

Essential supplies have been running low in Gaza since Egypt stopped lorries using the Rafah crossing after Israel troops captured the Gazan side of the terminal earlier this month.

A maritime aid corridor is expected to begin operating on Friday after the US anchored a temporary floating pier to a beach in Gaza. The American troops who helped build the pier will not step foot in Gaza. It is still unclear how aid be distributed given the challenges that have beset the UN and relief groups for months.

The UN aid chief Martin Griffiths warned on Thursday that famine was an immediate risk in Gaza with food stocks running out, and said Israel’s Rafah offensive had created fresh problems.

A senior US official said on Thursday that Washington shares concerns voiced on Wednesday by Mr Gallant over the possible imposition of military rule over Gaza after the war.

“We share the concern that Israel has not developed any plans for holding and governing territory the IDF clears, thereby allowing Hamas to regenerate in those areas,” the official said. “This is a concern because our objective is to see Hamas defeated.”

Heavy exchanges of fire continued along the Israel-Lebanon border on Thursday. Hizbullah fired more than 70 rockets and launched numerous attack drones across the entire border from the Mediterranean Sea in the west to the occupied Golan Heights in the east.

Hizbullah struck an army base close to Tiberius on the Sea of Galilee. Israel hit Hizbullah targets 100km inside Lebanon.

The United Nations’ top court opened two days of hearings into a request from South Africa to halt Israel’s military operation in Rafah. The hearing at the International Court of Justice is part of a case brought by South Africa accusing Israel of genocide. Last week South Africa asked for additional emergency measures to protect Rafah.

The South African legal team told the court in The Hague that Israeli leaders were inciting genocide and an emergency intervention was required. Israel’s legal team will respond on Friday. – Additional reporting Reuters