By Alexander Cornwell, Maayan Lubell and Nidal al-Mughrabi
TEL AVIV/JERUSALEM/CAIRO (Reuters) -Israel’s military called up tens of thousands of reservists on Wednesday in preparation for an expected assault on Gaza City, as the Israeli government considered a new proposal for a ceasefire after nearly two years of war.
The call-up signals Israel is pressing ahead with its plan to seize Gaza’s biggest urban centre despite international criticism of an operation likely to force the displacement of many more Palestinians.
But a military official briefing reporters said reserve soldiers would not report for duty until September, an interval that gives mediators some time to bridge gaps between Palestinian militant group Hamas and Israel over truce terms.
The official said that as part of planning for a new offensive in the Gaza Strip, there would be five divisions operating in the enclave, but most reservists were not expected to serve in combat in Gaza City.
“We will be moving into a new phase of combat, a gradual, precise and targeted operation in and around Gaza City, which currently serves as Hamas’ main military and governing stronghold,” the official said.
Israel’s security cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, approved a plan this month to expand the campaign in Gaza with the aim of taking Gaza City, where Israeli forces waged fierce urban warfare with Hamas in the early stages of the war. Israel currently holds about 75% of the Gaza Strip.
Many of Israel’s closest allies have urged the government to reconsider but Netanyahu is under pressure from some far-right members of his coalition to reject a temporary ceasefire, continue the war and pursue the annexation of the territory.
One far-right member, Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, announced final approval on Wednesday of a widely condemned Israeli plan for a settlement project in the occupied West Bank that he said would erase any prospect of a Palestinian state.
The war in Gaza began on October 7, 2023, when gunmen led by Hamas attacked southern Israeli communities near the border, killing some 1,200 people, mainly civilians, and taking 251 hostages including children into Gaza.
Over 62,000 Palestinians have been killed in Israel’s air and ground war in Gaza since then, according to Gaza health officials, who do not say how many were militants but have said most of those killed have been women and children.
Hamas has accepted a proposal put forward by Arab mediators for a 60-day ceasefire that would involve releasing some of the remaining hostages and freeing Palestinian prisoners in Israel.
The Israeli government, which has said all the 50 remaining hostages must be released at once, is studying the proposal. Israeli authorities believe that 20 hostages are still alive.
Many Gazans and foreign leaders fear a storming of Gaza City would cause significant casualties. Israel says it will help civilians leave battle zones before any assault begins.
ISRAELI TROOPS, HAMAS FIGHTERS CLASH
Israeli troops clashed on Wednesday with more than 15 Hamas militants who emerged from tunnel shafts and attacked with gunfire and anti-tank missiles near Khan Younis, south of Gaza City, severely wounding one soldier and lightly wounding two others, an Israeli military official said.
In a statement, Hamas’ Al-Qassam Brigades confirmed carrying out a raid on Israeli troops southeast of Khan Younis and engaging Israeli troops at point-blank range. It said one fighter blew himself up among the soldiers, causing casualties, during an attack that lasted several hours.
Israel’s military campaign has caused widespread devastation across the Gaza Strip, which before the war was home to about 2.3 million Palestinians. Many buildings including homes, schools and mosques have been destroyed, while the military has accused Hamas of operating from within civilian infrastructure.
Most Gazans have been displaced multiple times and forced into densely packed areas along the Mediterranean coast, including in Gaza City in the enclave’s north.
Israeli officials have said evacuation orders would be issued to Gaza City residents before any force moves in.
The Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem, which oversees Gaza’s only Catholic Church, located in Gaza City, said it had received reports that neighbourhoods near the small parish had started to receive evacuation notices.
Hamas, an Islamist movement that has ruled Gaza for almost two decades, has been severely weakened by the war. The Israeli military says Hamas has been reduced to a guerrilla force.
The Israeli military official who briefed reporters on Wednesday said Hamas had been trying to regroup and re-form in Gaza City in a more organised manner, but gave no evidence to support the assertion.
Hamas has said it would release all remaining hostages in exchange for an end to war. Israel says it will not end the war before Hamas disarms.
Opinion polls show strong Israeli public support for ending the war if it ensures the release of the hostages, and a rally in Tel Aviv urging the government to pursue such a deal drew a huge crowd on Saturday.
A new Reuters/Ipsos poll of Americans showed a 58% majority believe that every country in the United Nations should recognise Palestine as a nation.
(Reporting by Alexander Cornwell in Tel Aviv, Maayan Lubell in Jerusalem and Nidal Al Mughrabi in Cairo; writing by Alexander Cornwell and Howard Goller; editing by Alison Williams, Timothy Heritage and Mark Heinrich)
