Israeli Forces Launch Operation in Gaza's Rafah Amid Cease-Fire Talks

Israeli leaders have approved a military operation into the Gaza Strip city of Rafah, with Israeli forces now striking targets in the area. This move comes hours after Hamas announced its acceptance of an Egyptian-Qatari cease-fire proposal. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office stated that the proposal was "far from Israel's essential demands," but negotiators would be sent to continue talks on a cease-fire agreement. However, Israel said it was studying the offer, leaving it uncertain whether a deal had been sealed to halt the seven-month war in Gaza.Israel ordered around 100,000 Palestinians to evacuate the southern Gaza town of Rafah, signaling an imminent attack. The United States and other key allies of Israel oppose an offensive on Rafah, where approximately 1.4 million Palestinians, more than half of Gaza's population, are sheltering. Israeli military spokesman Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari said that Israel's military operations would continue in the meantime.President Joe Biden spoke with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and reiterated US concerns about an invasion of Rafah, stating that a cease-fire was the best way to protect the lives of Israeli hostages. US State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said American officials were reviewing the Hamas response and discussing it with regional partners.Details of the proposal have not been released. Egyptian officials said it called for a cease-fire of multiple stages starting with a limited hostage release and partial Israeli troop pullbacks within Gaza. The two sides would also negotiate a "permanent calm" leading to a full hostage release and greater Israeli withdrawal out of the territory.Hamas had been seeking clearer guarantees for its key demand of an end to the war and complete Israeli withdrawal in return for the release of all its hostages. Netanyahu and other Israeli leaders have repeatedly rejected that trade-off, vowing to continue their campaign until Hamas is destroyed after its October 7 attack on Israel that triggered the war.Israel says Rafah is the last significant Hamas stronghold in Gaza, and Netanyahu stated that the offensive against the town was vital to ensuring militants cannot rebuild their military capabilities. However, he faces strong American opposition. After the Israeli evacuation order was issued, Miller said the US has not seen a credible and implementable plan to protect Palestinian civilians.The looming operation has raised global alarm. Aid agencies have warned that an offensive will bring a surge of more civilian deaths in an Israeli campaign that has already killed 34,000 people and devastated the territory. It could also wreck the humanitarian aid operation based out of Rafah that is keeping Palestinians across the Gaza Strip alive.UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk called the evacuation order "inhumane." Israeli military leaflets were dropped ordering evacuation from eastern neighborhoods of Rafah, warning that an attack was imminent and anyone who stays "puts themselves and their family members in danger."The military told people to move to an Israel-declared humanitarian zone called Muwasi, a makeshift camp on the coast. It said Israel has expanded the size of the zone and that it included tents, food, water, and field hospitals. Around 450,000 displaced Palestinians are already sheltering in Muwasi.Tensions escalated when Hamas fired rockets at Israeli troops positioned on the border with Gaza near Israel's main crossing for delivering humanitarian aid, killing four soldiers. Israel shuttered the crossing. Meanwhile, Israeli airstrikes on Rafah killed 22 people, including children and two infants.The war was sparked by an unprecedented October 7 raid into southern Israel in which Hamas and other militants killed around 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducted around 250 hostages. After exchanges during a November cease-fire, Hamas is believed to still hold about 100 Israelis as well as the bodies of around 30 others.