IDF says it’s completing preparations for ‘attack from the air, sea and land’

The Israel Defense Forces says it is completing preparations for a “significant ground operation” in the Gaza Strip.

In a statement, the IDF says it is readying to “expand the offensive” by implementing a “wide range of offensive operational plans” which it says include a “joint and coordinated attack from the air, sea and land.”

The IDF says it is finalizing the draft of hundreds of thousands of reservists, as the logistics directorate is working to provide troops with all the equipment they will need for the ground offensive.

“In recent days, the tools required for combat have been transferred to the assembly areas, and at this stage the various units of the Technological and Logistics Directorate are working to complete the qualification of the tools and equipping them with advanced combat means, as needed,” the IDF says.

“IDF battalions and soldiers are deployed all over the country and are prepared to increase readiness for the next stages of the war, with an emphasis on a significant ground operation,” the military adds.

The military is expected to launch a ground invasion in the Gaza Strip, but its extent and when it is carried out may be affected by operational considerations, including the evacuation of Palestinian civilians from northern Gaza and growing tensions on Israel’s northern border.