Benjamin Netanyahu says date set for Rafah invasion amid truce hopes

The US still opposes an Israeli assault on the southern Gaza city, as Egypt says if a truce is agreed it could begin as soon as Wednesday.

Protesters clash with Police as anti-government protests are stepped up in Takem, Jerusalem. Picture: Getty Images.

The United States says it still opposes a major Israeli assault on the southern Gaza city of Rafah, after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said a date for the attack was set, and as hopes rise the latest truce negotiations may succeed.

President Joe Biden’s administration has repeatedly called on Israel to present a plan to protect civilians in Rafah, where some 1.5 million Palestinians have taken shelter from the six-month-old war.

“We have made clear to Israel that we think a full-scale military invasion of Rafah would have an enormously harmful effect on those civilians and that it would ultimately hurt Israel’s security,” State Department spokesman Matthew Miller told reporters when asked about Mr Netanyahu’s remarks.

“It’s not just a question of Israel presenting a plan to us. We have made clear to them that we think that there is a better way to achieve what is a legitimate goal, which is to degrade and dismantle and defeat the Hamas battalions that still remain in Rafah,” Miller said.

Mr Netanyahu in a video statement Monday did not say when the incursion into Rafah would start but said, “It will happen -- there is a date.”

Mr Netanyahu’s remarks came after the Israeli Defence Forces withdrew from southern Gaza, a move believed to be planned so troops could rest and regroup in advance of more targeted military action in the enclave.

The Prime Minister is under pressure from ruling partners to remain in Gaza: far right National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir on Monday threatened to leave the government if the IDF did not enter Rafah or if it prematurely ended the war.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks to reporters. Picture: AFP.

Meanwhile Hamas says it is studying a proposal for a truce and hostage-prisoner swap after talks in Cairo, as Israel’s defence minister said it was the right time for a deal, six months into a war with the Islamist militants in Gaza.

Israel is under growing international pressure to agree to a ceasefire, including from its top ally and arms supplier the United States.

Late Monday a Hamas source close to the negotiations said the group was reviewing the proposal that would see a six-week truce and around 40 Israeli women and child hostages freed in exchange for up to 900 Palestinian prisoners.

The source, asking for anonymity, said the first phase would also involve the return of displaced Palestinian civilians to northern Gaza, and the delivery of 400 to 500 trucks of food aid daily to the territory, where the United Nations has warned of imminent famine.

The Wall St Journal reports that under the plan, Hamas must deliver a list of the 40 hostages it would release, including five female soldiers, and have to compromise on which Palestinian prisoners could be released from Israeli prisons.

Egyptian and Qatari mediators are expecting both Hamas leadership and Israel to respond to the latest proposal by Tuesday night local time.

Qatari Foreign Ministry spokesman Majed Al-Ansari told the BBC that he was increasingly optimistic about reaching agreement on a truce, while Diaa Rashwan, chairman of Egypt’s State Information Service, told broadcaster Alghad TV that if a truce was secured it could begin as soon as Wednesday, the start of the Muslim Eid al-Fitr holiday.

However officials from both Israel and Hamas downplayed the claims. “We still don’t see a deal on the horizon,” an Israeli official told the Ynet news site. “The distance [between the sides] is still great.”

Mr Biden last week warned that US support for Israel was on the line unless Israel addresses humanitarian concerns after Israel killed seven aid workers in what its military called a mistake.

Mr Miller praised some initial steps from Israel including an increase in aid trucks entering Gaza and the establishment of a military unit to coordinate with humanitarian workers and avoid conflict.

“While we welcome these initial steps, it’s crucial to recognize that much more needs to be done. Many Palestinians in Gaza are at risk of famine, and every single man, woman and child in Gaza is experiencing food insecurity,” Miller said.

“We expect Israel to fully implement its commitments quickly, and we will we will be monitoring that implementation,” he said.

“Ultimately it is the results that matter and we will be judging them on those results.”sct/dw