Hamas has threatened that not a single hostage will be allowed to leave Gaza alive unless its demands for a prisoner exchange are met. But Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says dozens of Hamas militants have surrendered and he described the situation as “the beginning of the end” for the group
- Israel has ordered civilians to flee the centre of Khan Younis - with an official saying he doesn't want civilians caught up in the "difficult fighting" there
- Key mediator Qatar says the chances of a new ceasefire between Israel and Hamas are "narrowing", but has vowed to keep up the pressure on both sides
- Hamas attacked Israel nine weeks ago - killing 1,200 people and taking 240 hostages, some of whom were released during a short-lived truce
- The Hamas-run health ministry in Gaza has said Israel has killed about 18,000 people in its retaliatory campaign.
The likely timeline for Israel’s offensive in the Gaza Strip remains a main focus in the Israeli media.
As international pressure for a ceasefire has increased, Israeli officials seem to have extended their timeframe.
Speaking to Channel 12 TV, the national security advisor, Tzachi Hanegbi, insisted the US – Israel’s closest ally – has set no deadline for Israel to achieve its goals. He said: “The evaluation that this can’t be measured in weeks is correct, and I’m not sure it can be measured in months.”
Meanwhile, Israeli media analysts widely characterise the current fighting, which involves several army divisions deployed deep inside Gaza, as the second stage of the war.
They suggest military officials would like to have until the end of January to complete it.
However, it is thought the US is quietly pushing for this phase to end by the new year.
Israeli public opinion is also deeply sensitive to emotional calls for a new release deal from the families of hostages held in Gaza.
Experts say in the third phase of the war, troops are expected to be deployed in a buffer zone in Gaza for an interim period.
The fourth and final stage is supposed to see a new regime taking power, to replace Hamas.
There have been almost daily exchanges between Israel and Hezbollah, the dominant militia-cum-political movement in Lebanon, which is allied with Iran.
It’s very well armed and very experienced from fighting in Syria, and an all-together different category of enemy for Israel than Hamas could be – and that is heating up.
There’s also been speculation that Israel – once it’s done what it needs to do in Gaza – might move on to try and do something similar with Hezbollah.
For many people in the Middle East that would be something of a nightmare scenario.
There’s an element of solidarity in what Hezbollah is doing, but its leader Hassan Nasrallah has said that they’re essentially tying down Israeli troops in the north.
So it’s not a symbolic, performative act. They argue that they are doing something on a lower level than full warfare, but that they are still tying down thousands of Israeli troops.
There’s also an enormous amount of economic disruption in northern Israel, and many of the population from the area have been displaced from border communities and are going to live in hotels elsewhere in the country.
It hasn’t been in the news in the way that Gaza has, but it’s causing a lot of damage to Israel.
Italy, France and Germany have called on the European Union to impose ad hoc sanctions against Hamas and its supporters, Reuters reports, saying it has seen a letter written by the country’s foreign ministers to the EU’s foreign policy chief Josep Borrell.
"We express our full support for the... proposal to create an ad hoc sanctions regime against Hamas and its supporters," the letter says.
"The swift adoption of this sanctions regime will enable us to send a strong political message about the European Union's commitment against Hamas and our solidarity with Israel.”
FULL REPORT AND MANY MORE DETAILS AT: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/world-middle-east-67672759
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