Israel says it will expand its offensive across most of Gaza

Israel’s defence minister has announced its military will soon “vigorously” expand its offensive throughout most of Gaza.

Israel Katz also said the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) had completed the takeover of a “security zone” in the southern part of the Gaza Strip, separating the cities of Rafah and Khan Younis.

Israel’s military also issued evacuation orders for Khan Younis and its surrounding areas, saying it was preparing to carry out strikes in response to the launch of projectiles from Gaza, which Hamas has claimed responsibility for.

Israel resumed its offensive against Hamas on 18 March following the collapse of a two-month ceasefire.

Since then, it has seized large areas of Gaza, displacing hundreds of thousands of Gazans once more.

The military has already seized land running along the entirety of the Palestinian territory’s borders, which it has characterised as a buffer zone to prevent attacks.

Israeli officials have said the ongoing offensive aims to pressure Hamas into freeing the 59 remaining hostages being held in Gaza – 24 of whom are believed to be alive.

On Saturday, Katz said the IDF had completed the takeover of the “Morag axis” – a reference to a former Jewish settlement located between Rafah and Khan Younis.

He said this “makes the entire area between the Philadelphia axis and Morag part of the Israeli security zone”.

The takeover of the corridor effectively cuts the southern city of Rafah off from Khan Younis. Rafah makes up almost one fifth of Gaza.

Katz also warned that “IDF activity will soon expand vigorously to additional locations throughout most of Gaza” and people in these areas “will have to evacuate the fighting zones”.

“This is the last moment to remove Hamas and release the hostages, and bring about an end to the war,” he said.

He added that areas of northern Gaza, including the city of Beit Hanoun and in the Netzarim Corridor – which cuts through central Gaza – were also being evacuated so that a “security zone” could be expanded there too.

“In northern Gaza as well – in Beit Hanoun and other neighbourhoods – residents are evacuating, the area is being taken over and the security zone is being expanded, including in the Netzarim corridor,” Katz said.

When approached for comment, the IDF referred the BBC to the defence ministry’s remarks.

Hamas said, in quotes cited by the news agency AFP, that the offensive not only “kills defenceless civilians” but also makes the fate of hostages “uncertain”.

The UN’s human rights office warned last month that the evacuation orders failed to comply with international law, accusing Israel of not taking any measures to provide accommodation for those affected, or ensuring satisfactory hygiene, health, safety and nutrition conditions.

Israel’s government said it was evacuating civilians to protect them from harm and from being used by Hamas as “human shields” in violation of international law.

Following Katz’s announcement, the Israeli military issued an evacuation order for residents of the southern city of Khan Younis and its surrounding areas, saying it was preparing to respond to projectiles launched from Gaza earlier on Saturday.

The IDF said its air defences had intercepted three projectiles launched from Gaza towards Israeli territory. Hamas’s military wing later claimed responsibility for the attack. No injuries were reported.

In Gaza, the Hamas-run health ministry said as of 13:00 local time (11:00 BST) on Saturday, 21 people had been killed in the previous 24 hours, and a further 64 injured.

The Israeli military launched a campaign to destroy Hamas in response to an unprecedented cross-border attack on 7 October 2023, in which about 1,200 people were killed and 251 others were taken hostage.

More than 50,933 people have been killed in Gaza since then, according to the territory’s Hamas-run health ministry.

Of those, 1,563 have been killed since 18 March, when Israel restarted its offensive in the Gaza Strip, the ministry said.