Israel to add large areas of Gaza to its security zones

Israel announced a major expansion of military operations in Gaza yesterday, saying large areas of the enclave would be seized and added to its security zones, accompanied by large-scale evacuations of the population.

In a statement, Defence Minister Israel Katz said evacuations would take place from areas where there was fighting, while urging Gaza people to eliminate Hamas and return Israeli hostages as the only way to end the offensive.

He said the operation would clear out Hamas members and infrastructure "and seize large areas that will be added to the security zones of the State of Israel".

Meanwhile, an Israeli air strike targeted the vicinity of a UN Agency for Palestinian Refugees (UNRWA) medical centre in the Jabalia refugee camp.  Gaza civil defence said 16 Palestinians killed in the strike, reports AFP.

The Israeli military had already issued evacuation warnings to Gazans living around the southern city of Rafah and towards the city of Khan Younis, telling them to move to the Al-Mawasi area on the shore, previously designated a humanitarian zone.

Israel's Army Radio said the 36th division, sent to the Southern Command area last month to prepare for operations in Gaza, would take part in the operation, which came after a wave of strikes was reported overnight.

The Palestinian civil defence agency said at least 12 bodies had been recovered by its teams in Khan Younis and Palestinian radio reported that the area around Rafah was almost completely empty following the evacuation orders, reports Reuters.

Katz's statement did not make clear how much land Israel intends to seize or whether the move represented a permanent annexation of territory, which would add further pressure on a population in Gaza already living in one of the most crowded areas in the world.

According to the Israeli rights group Gisha, Israel has already taken control of some 62 square kilometres or around 17 percent of the total area of Gaza, as part of a buffer zone around the edges of the enclave.

Seizing the buffer zone, which contains infrastructure including wells, sewage pumping stations, and wastewater treatment facilities as well as a significant part of Gaza's agricultural land, would also increase pressure on the enclave's ability to sustain itself.

At the same time, Israeli leaders have said they plan to facilitate voluntary departure of Palestinians from the enclave, after US President Donald Trump called for it to be permanently evacuated and redeveloped as a coastal resort under US control.