Katz says offensive aimed at seizing ‘extensive territory,’ as IDF pounds south Gaza
Hostage families slams expanded operation, says government 'sacrificing the hostages' for 'territorial gains;' IDF hits Hamas command center housed in UNRWA clinic, killing at least 8
Defense Minister Israel Katz announced Wednesday morning that Israel is expanding operations in Gaza, following extensive overnight strikes in the southern part of the enclave.
Troops will move to clear areas “of terrorists and infrastructure, and capture extensive territory that will be added to the State of Israel’s security areas,” Katz said in a statement.
The IDF deployed another division to the southern Gaza Strip early in the day as part of the expansion of the offensive against Hamas.
Palestinian media reported a large wave of strikes in Rafah and Khan Younis the night prior, and later said troops were advancing in Rafah. According to the reports, the bombings killed 21 people as of Wednesday morning.
Later Wednesday, the IDF and Shin Bet said in a joint statement that they carried out a strike on Hamas terror operatives in the Jabalia area. Palestinian media reported at least eight dead in the strike and said the target was an UNRWA clinic.
“The operatives were in a command and control compound that served as terror infrastructure and as a central meeting point for the terrorist organization,” according to the Israeli statement.
“Additionally, the building was used by the Jabalia Battalion to advance [attacks] plans against Israeli civilians and IDF forces,” they added.
The military said various measures were taken ahead of the strikes to minimize the risk to civilians, including intelligence gathering and aerial surveillance.
The Palestinian Authority foreign ministry condemned the “massacre at the UNRWA clinic in Jabalia,” calling for “serious international pressure” to halt Israel’s widening offensive.
Also Wednesday, troops shot and killed a gunman who approached the security fence in southern Gaza., the army said. No soldiers were hurt.
Troops’ entry into southern Gaza follows an IDF announcement a month ago that its 36th Division had been sent to the Southern Command to prepare for operations in the Strip.
The expanded ground operation came a couple of days after the IDF issued an evacuation warning for the entire Rafah area and a large swath of land between Rafah and Khan Younis, where the IDF had previously not operated with ground troops.
It was the most significant evacuation order issued by the IDF since the offensive against Hamas resumed earlier this month, ending a two-month ceasefire. The orders came during Eid al-Fitr, a normally festive Muslim holiday marking the end of the fasting month of Ramadan.
In his Wednesday statement, Katz also called on Gazans “to act now to overthrow Hamas and return all the hostages.”
The Hostages and Missing Families Forum decried the decision, saying families “were horrified to wake up this morning to the defense minister’s announcement that the military operation in Gaza would be expanded for the purpose of ‘capturing extensive territory.'”
“Has it been decided to sacrifice the hostages for the sake of ‘territorial gains?'” the Forum said in a statement. “Instead of securing the release of the hostages through a deal and ending the war, the Israeli government is sending more soldiers into Gaza to fight in the same areas where battles have already taken place repeatedly.”
The father of hostage Alon Ohel, who is thought to be suffering life-threatening injuries in Hamas captivity based on testimony from released hostages, cautioned against the expanded offensive in Gaza.
“I woke up to another day of worrying and fearing for Alon’s fate. From what we know and have seen, combat has not brought the hostages back home, and the way to return them is through a deal,” said Kobi Ohel.
Terror groups in the Gaza Strip are still holding 59 hostages, including 58 of the 251 abducted by Hamas-led terrorists on October 7, 2023. Among them are the bodies of at least 35 hostages who have been confirmed dead by the IDF.
Israel restarted intense bombing of Gaza on March 18 and then launched a new ground offensive, ending a nearly two-month ceasefire in the war with Hamas. The Hamas-run health ministry in Gaza said on Tuesday that 1,042 people have been killed in the renewed offensive.
According to the terms of the January 19 ceasefire deal, the sides were to launch negotiations over the second phase a few weeks into the first, but Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu refused to do so, insisting that the war would not end until Hamas’s governing and military capabilities had been demolished.