Israeli forces have completed the encirclement of Gaza’s Rafah, the military said on Saturday, part of an announced plan to seize more areas of the enclave, accompanied by large-scale evacuations of the population.
The military has issued repeated expulsion orders to hundreds of thousands of Palestinians across Rafah since it resumed invasion in Gaza on March 18, forcing them into a diminishing space limited by the sea.
Israel said on April 2 that troops had begun seizing an area it called the Morag Axis.
Hundreds of thousands of Palestinians have since fled Rafah, a 60 square km area that borders Egypt to the south.
“Over the past 24 hours, the 36th Division’s troops completed the establishment of the Morag route, separating Rafah and Khan Younis,” the military said on Saturday.
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Ceasefire talks
More than 50,000 Palestinians have since been killed in Israel’s war, according to health authorities in the enclave.
Most of the population has been displaced and much of Gaza is in ruins.
Israel restarted its bombardment in March after effectively abandoning a ceasefire in place since January.
The offensive will continue, it says, until the remaining 59 hostages are freed, and Hamas is removed from Gaza.
Hamas says it will free hostages only as part of a deal that will end the war and has rejected demands to lay down its arms.
A Hamas delegation was expected in Cairo over the weekend to discuss new truce proposals, according to a source in the group.
