FLASH
Shkruar nga Pamfleti
Israeli forces hit targets across the Gaza Strip on Friday, including airstrikes in the city of Rafah, where Israel's military offensive is now focused.
According to the Associated Press news agency, at least 12 people were killed in two airstrikes on Friday, including two children and four women.
The Israeli military said its forces are continuing military operations in the Rafah area and have found rocket launchers, weapons and underground tunnels in the center of the city.
Israel's expanded offensive in Rafah is still not being called a "major operation" by President Biden's administration, according to State Department spokesman Vedant Patel.
"Based on the facts on the ground, we have not yet seen a major operation in Rafah. We have been clear what it is not, it is not a major military operation," spokesman Patel said on Thursday.
Meanwhile, in a tense meeting, Israel's national security adviser is reported to have told the families of the hostages on Thursday that the government of Israel is not ready to sign the agreement for their release and that there is no second plan.
The meeting came a day after senior Israeli official Tzachi Hanegbi said he expected the war to last another seven months in an effort to destroy the military and governance capacity of Hamas and other militant groups operating in Gaza.
According to the families of the hostages who were in the meeting with Mr. Hanegbi, he told them that the only hope for reaching an agreement is through public pressure.
Polls that measure public opinion should prove that most Israelis are in favor of ending the war in exchange for the return of the hostages, Mr. Hanegbi was quoted as saying, according to the Associated Press agency.
The United Nations aid organization warned that Israel's military operation in Rafah has severely restricted the flow of humanitarian aid and is threatening to cause "the same catastrophic level of hunger" as in northern Gaza.
UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric told reporters on Thursday that the level of hunger in central and southern Gaza is escalating rapidly.
US Central Command announced that the US military has not dropped aid from the air into Gaza since May 9. Pentagon officials have blamed worsening weather and Israel's offensive in Rafah.
The lack of air aid comes as the temporary port built by the United States suffered major damage from strong winds and rough seas a week after it was built. / VOA
Lini një Përgjigje