Israel said on Wednesday it had called up tens of thousands of reservists in preparation for an expected offensive on Gaza City, even as the government weighed a new ceasefire proposal aimed at halting nearly two years of war.
A senior military official said the mobilisation signalled Israel’s intent to seize Gaza’s largest urban centre, which it considers Hamas’ main stronghold. But the official added that most reservists would not be required to report until September, giving international mediators time to push forward talks on a truce.
“We will be moving into a new phase of combat, a gradual, precise and targeted operation in and around Gaza City,” the official told reporters. Israel plans to deploy five divisions in Gaza, though not all will take part in front-line combat, the official said.
The war, which began on Oct. 7, 2023, when Hamas-led fighters killed some 1,200 people in southern Israel and took 251 hostages, has devastated the coastal enclave. Gaza health authorities say more than 62,000 Palestinians have been killed since then, most of them women and children.
Hamas has accepted a 60-day ceasefire proposal brokered by Arab mediators that includes the release of some Israeli hostages in exchange for Palestinian prisoners.
Israel has insisted all 50 remaining hostages must be freed at once before any deal is finalized. Officials believe around 20 hostages are still alive.
REUTERS/S.S