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Israel sent tanks into Rafah and took control of a key crossing linking the Gaza Strip to Egypt, securing a strategic corridor as it ramps up preparations for a military offensive in the border city.
Israeli military footage showed its tanks entering the Gaza side of the Rafah crossing. The move followed a series of airstrikes against Hamas targets and warnings for civilians in the eastern part of Rafah to evacuate to zones in the west.
Israeli and Hamas delegations were set to head to Cairo on Tuesday to discuss Hamas’s terms to pause the fighting for an exchange of some of the 128 hostages taken on Oct. 7 and held by Hamas and Palestinian prisoners held by Israel. The terms fell far short of what Israel could accept, Benny Gantz, a member of Israel’s war cabinet, said Monday.
Central Intelligence Agency Director William Burns was also expected to return to Cairo from Doha, Qatar, for the talks on Tuesday. Burns is in the region as part of the Biden administration’s efforts to mediate a cease-fire deal.
Israel’s military said the border-crossing operation was “very precise and limited in space,” and aimed at eliminating Hamas militant infrastructure after the group fired rockets and mortars at the Israeli-controlled Kerem Shalom border crossing on Sunday, killing four soldiers and wounding several others. Israel said that crossing, one of two main entryways for aid into Gaza along with the Rafah crossing, remained closed on Tuesday.
Hamas’s military wing claimed responsibility on Tuesday morning for another rocket barrage on Kerem Shalom in Israel, signaling it was refusing to back down.
During the border-crossing operation, approximately 20 militants were killed, three tunnel shafts were discovered and special forces were continuing to scan the area, according to the Israeli military. An explosive-laden car driving toward Israeli troops was struck. No Israeli soldiers were injured, according to the military.
Analysts say the increased military activity in Rafah is directly tied to the negotiations and aimed at increasing pressure on the militant group. “If Hamas will not go into a deal, Israel is keen to go further into Rafah,” but could potentially stop with the crossing, said Israel Ziv, a former commander of the Israeli military’s Gaza Division.
The Israeli military didn’t say how long the operation would last. It said the “vast amount of people” had heeded its call to evacuate eastern Rafah ahead of the operation.
Israel says it needs to break up four remaining Hamas battalions located in Rafah to achieve its goal of destroying the group’s ability to attack Israel.
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