Israel defence minister threatens to annex parts of Gaza

Jerusalem: Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz threatened Friday to annex parts of the Gaza Strip unless Hamas militants release the remaining Israeli hostages held in the war-battered Palestinian territory. The warning came as Israel stepped up the renewed assault it launched on Tuesday, shattering the relative calm in the war-battered territory since a January 19 ceasefire. A Palestinian source close to the ceasefire talks told AFP late Friday that Hamas had received a proposal from mediators Egypt and Qatar for re-establishing a truce and exchanging hostages for Palestinian prisoners "according to a timeline to be agreed upon".

The source said the proposal "includes the entry of humanitarian aid" into Gaza, which has been blocked by Israel since March 2. Israel resumed intensive bombing of Gaza on Tuesday, citing deadlock in indirect negotiations on next steps in the truce after its first stage expired earlier this month. The territory's civil defence agency said Israeli strikes killed 11 people on Friday -- three in pre-dawn strikes and eight more during the daytime.

On Thursday, it had reported a death toll of 504 since the bombardment resumed, one of the highest since the war began more



than 17 months ago with Hamas's attack on Israel. In a statement Friday, Katz said: "I ordered (the army) to seize more territory in Gaza... The more Hamas refuses to free the hostages, the more territory it will lose, which will be annexed by Israel". Should Hamas not comply, Katz also threatened "to expand buffer zones around Gaza to protect Israeli civilian population areas and soldiers by implementing a permanent Israeli occupation of the area".

Israeli President Isaac Herzog expressed worry about the government's actions in a video statement Thursday, saying it was "unthinkable to resume fighting while still pursuing the sacred mission of bringing our hostages home". Thousands of protesters have rallied in Jerusalem in recent days, accusing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of resuming military operations without regard for the safety of the hostages. Of the 251 hostages seized during Hamas's October 7, 2023 attack, 58 are still held by Gaza militants, including 34 the Israeli military says are dead. The Israeli military said Thursday that it had closed off the territory's main north-south route as it expanded ground operations that resumed on Wednesday.