Israel using West Bank-style strategy to divide Gaza
Israel’s military is attempting to divide Gaza into small, disconnected pockets, weakening it in much the same way it has the occupied West Bank, says Omar Ashour, professor of security and military studies at the Doha Institute for Graduate Studies.
It will do this by creating three separate corridors in the enclave, he told Al Jazeera:
- the Netzarim Corridor, which splits Gaza into north and south
- a separate east-west division
- a 1km (0.6 mile) buffer zone along the Israeli border
Israel’s military, Ashour predicts, will then use these zones as bases from which to launch regular raids into Gaza, in a strategy that avoids full-on military occupation but continues to cause high civilian casualties.
“I think they [Israel’s military] will be based there for the long term and do these heavy raids, similar to the one you’re seeing in Jabalia right now,” Ashour told Al Jazeera. “They go there, undermine the capabilities of whatever they see as a threat, with a lot of civilian casualties because of the population density, and they will keep repeating that.”
Israel is unlikely to forgo this strategy unless the United States withholds extensive weaponry or delivers “serious condemnation”, Ashour said, adding that both scenarios are unlikely.
Displaced families trapped in central Rafah as artillery fire rages
Over the past few hours, there seems to be a surge in attacks in the southern part of Rafah city, very close to the Egyptian border. The Israeli military is pushing deeper along the Philadelphi Corridor, slowly getting closer to the western part of the city.
In the central part of Rafah city, there is a confirmed report of families trapped inside their residential homes, caught in the line of artillery fire. Israeli quadcopters chase people there, preventing them from evacuating to safer areas.
From the northeast to the northwest of Rafah, where tent camps have been attacked in recent days, the situation is getting worse by the hour because of the expansive military operations. At the same time, nearly all health and public facilities are pushed out of service right now.
Three Israeli soldiers killed in southern Gaza
The Israeli military says three of its soldiers serving in the Nahal Brigade have been killed in the south of the Gaza Strip. Three others were badly wounded in the incident, the military said, without providing further details.
Israel’s public broadcaster Kan Radio said they were hurt by an explosive device set off in a building in Rafah.
The Nahal Brigade comprises four infantry battalions, including one reconnaissance battalion.
Patients struggling to reach Emirati maternity hospital due to shelling: Ministry
Ongoing artillery shelling in Rafah is making it increasingly difficult for patients and health teams to reach the Emirati maternity hospital, the only partially functioning hospital in the city, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry.
The World Health Organization’s representative in the Palestinian territories, Rik Peeperkorn, warned on Tuesday that the Emirati maternity hospital would likely be knocked out of service if Israel’s incursion continues, leaving Rafah with only a string of field hospitals along the coast.
One killed near Deir el-Balah
Our colleagues at Al Jazeera Arabic are reporting that Israeli strikes to the west of Deir el-Balah have killed at least one Palestinian and injured others.
Deir el-Balah in central Gaza is one of the main areas Palestinians fleeing Rafah have turned to for shelter. However, areas around the city have continued to face regular air strikes and artillery shelling.
