CAIRO: Israeli forces continued operations near the southern Gaza town of Khan Younis on Monday, as the international community pushes for an agreement to end fighting in Gaza and prevent a drift into a wider regional conflict with Iran and its proxies.
Palestinian medics said Israeli military strikes on several areas of Khan Younis killed at least 16 people and wounded several others on Monday. Meanwhile, more families and displaced people streamed out of areas threatened by new evacuation orders, urging people to leave the area.
As fighting continued in several areas of the Gaza Strip, Hamas reacted skeptically to the latest round of talks scheduled for Thursday under the mediation of Egypt and Qatar, saying it saw no sign of any movement from the Israeli side.
In a statement on Sunday, it said the mediators must force Israel to accept a ceasefire proposal based on the ideas of US President Joe Biden, which Hamas has accepted, “instead of seeking further rounds of negotiations or new proposals that would provide cover for the occupying power's aggression.”
Two sources close to Hamas said the group was convinced that the new call for talks had been coordinated in advance with Israel to prevent Iranian and Hezbollah reactions to the assassination of the group's leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran and a senior Hezbollah leader in Lebanon.
“You could say it is a mild rejection. If Hamas receives a workable plan, a positive Israeli response to the proposal it has accepted, things could change, but so far Hamas believes Netanyahu is not serious about an agreement,” said a Palestinian official close to the mediation efforts.
Hamas's response to the talks came as preparations for a larger-scale confrontation were increasing, with Washington ordering the deployment of a guided missile submarine to the Middle East and the Abraham Lincoln Battle Group accelerating its deployment to the region.
Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant told U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin that Iran is preparing for a large-scale military attack on Israel, Barack Ravid, a normally well-informed reporter for Axios News, reported on Twitter.
Israel has been preparing for a major attack since last month, when a rocket attack in the Israeli-occupied West Bank killed 12 teenagers and Israel responded by killing a senior Hezbollah commander in Beirut.
One day after this operation, Ismail Haniyeh, the political leader of Hamas, was assassinated in Tehran, prompting Iran to vow retaliation against Israel.
The possible escalation underscores the extent to which the Gaza war has thrown the Middle East into turmoil, even though it has now been going on for eleven months.
The Hamas-led attack on Israeli communities around the Gaza Strip left around 1,200 people dead and over 250 captured in Gaza, according to Israeli figures, and was one of the most devastating blows against Israel in its history.
In response, Israeli forces razed Gaza, displaced most of the population and killed around 40,000 people, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry, in a war that has sparked global horror.
On Saturday, numerous people were killed in Israeli attacks on a school building in Gaza City. According to the military, the attacks targeted fighters from the armed wings of Hamas and Islamic Jihad.
Gaza health officials say most of the deaths are civilians, but Israel says at least a third of the casualties are fighters. Israel says it has lost 329 soldiers in Gaza.
