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Israeli-Palestinian conflict

Israel to continue Rafah operation, also sending negotiators to Cairo — premier’s office

"Although Hamas’s proposal is far from Israel’s obligatory demands, Israel will simultaneously send a delegation to the talks, in order to seize an opportunity for achieving an agreement on terms that would be favorable for Israel," Netanyahu said

TEL AVIV, May 7. /TASS/. The war cabinet of Israel has unanimously resolved to continue the military operation in the city of Rafah in the south of the Gaza Strip, the office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a statement.

"The war cabinet unanimously resolved that Israel will continue the operation in Rafah in order to exert military pressure on Hamas, facilitate the release of our hostages and achieve other goals of the war," the statement says.

At the same time, the office said that Israel was planning to send its delegation to Cairo for talks on Gaza.

"Although Hamas’s proposal is far from Israel’s obligatory demands, Israel will simultaneously send a delegation to the talks, in order to seize an opportunity for achieving an agreement on terms that would be favorable for Israel," the premier said.

Earlier, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said it had delivered targeted strikes against Hamas targets in the eastern section of Rafah, a city in the south of the Gaza Strip. Prior to that, IDF Spokesperson Daniel Hagari said Israel attacked more than 50 Hamas targets near Rafah during the day. On Monday morning, the IDF warned locals about the need to evacuate to a safe zone in another district of the enclave.

Tensions flared up again in the Middle East on October 7 after militants from the Gaza Strip-based radical Palestinian group Hamas launched a surprise incursion on Israeli territory, killing many Israeli kibbutz residents living near the Gaza border and abducting more than 240 Israelis, including women, children and the elderly. Israel declared a total blockade of the Gaza Strip and launched bombardments of the enclave and some areas in Lebanon and Syria, as well as a ground operation against Hamas in the Gaza Strip. Clashes are also reported in the West Bank.

In the light of the ongoing military operation, the global community has been exerting mounting pressure on the Israeli government, calling for a soonest ceasefire in the enclave and urging Israel to abandon its plans of invading Rafah. The Israeli leadership insists that the operation in Rafah is necessary for achieving a "total victory" and defeating Hamas military units in the Gaza Strip.

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Israeli-Palestinian conflict

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