by Emmitt Barry, Worthy News Correspondent
(Worthy News) – Israel’s military is preparing to target what it describes as the final stronghold of Hamas in Rafah, a city in Gaza where over a million Palestinians are currently seeking refuge.
Preparations for the ground incursion are intensifying, with plans to evacuate approximately 1.4 million civilians from Rafah over a three-week period. The duration of the operation is expected to last about six weeks, depending on the response from Hamas and the presence of civilians.
While the U.S. has urged Israel to reconsider a major offensive into Rafah, highlighting concerns for civilian safety, Israel insists it must take action in the southern city in Gaza to eliminate Hamas, a designated terrorist organization by the U.S.
Israel’s military has reported that it has successfully disbanded 20 out of Hamas’s 24 military battalions and is now focused on eliminating the last four battalions located in Rafah.
In recent days, Israel’s air force has conducted strikes in Rafah, with Wafa, the Palestinian Authority’s official news agency, reporting that Sunday’s attacks killed at least 16 Palestinians.
In mid-April, Israel’s Defense Forces (IDF) announced it had mobilized two reserve brigades “for operational activities on the Gazan front.”
According to Egyptian officials familiar with the plans, Israel is gearing up to relocate Rafah civilians to nearby Khan Younis and other areas, where it intends to establish shelters equipped with tents, food distribution centers, and medical facilities, including field hospitals.
Egyptian officials told the Wall Street Journal that the evacuation operation, expected to last two to three weeks, will be conducted in coordination with the U.S., Egypt, and other Arab nations, including the United Arab Emirates.
Any military operation by Israel would target the removal of key Hamas military commanders and the rescue of the 129 hostages still in captivity following the terrorist organization’s attacks on Oct. 7. Most of these hostages are suspected to be located in Rafah.
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