Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz declared on Wednesday that the army would take “large areas” of the Palestinian territories as part of a significant military campaign in the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip.
Israel will increase its presence in Gaza in order to “destroy and clear the area of terrorists and terrorist infrastructure,” according to a statement made by the defense chief.
Without specifying the amount of territory Israel would seize, he stated that the enlarged operation will “seize large areas that will be incorporated into Israeli security zones.”
The announcement comes after he warned last week the military would soon “operate with full force” in additional parts of Hamas-run Gaza.
Israel restarted intense bombing of Gaza on March 18 and then launched a new ground offensive, ending a nearly two-month ceasefire in the war with Hamas.
According to an AFP count based on official Israeli numbers, the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack on Israel, which claimed 1,218 lives, was the catalyst for the war.
According to the territory’s health ministry, Israel’s retaliatory military campaign has killed at least 50,357 individuals in Gaza, most of them civilians.
