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Israeli-Palestinian conflict

IDF reports targeted strikes on Hamas facilities in Rafah

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the goal is to "exert military pressure on Hamas, facilitate the release of our hostages and achieve other goals of the war"

TEL AVIV, May 7. /TASS/. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) is now delivering strikes on facilities of Palestine’s radical movement Hamas in the eastern section of the city of Rafah, which lies on the border between Gaza and Egypt, the IDF press service said.

"The IDF is currently conducting targeted strikes against Hamas terror targets in eastern Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip. Details to follow," the IDF said in a statement.

At the same time, the office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a statement that the war cabinet of Israel had unanimously resolved to continue the military operation in the city of Rafah in the south of the Gaza Strip. The goal is to "exert military pressure on Hamas, facilitate the release of our hostages and achieve other goals of the war."

The premier’s office also said that although the Israeli side considers Hamas proposals as unsatisfactory, it will send its delegation to Cairo talks "in order to seize an opportunity for achieving an agreement on terms that would be favorable for Israel."

Tensions flared up again in the Middle East on October 7 after militants from the Gaza Strip-based radical Palestinian group Hamas launched a surprise incursion on Israeli territory, killing many Israeli kibbutz residents living near the Gaza border and abducting more than 240 Israelis, including women, children and the elderly. Israel declared a total blockade of the Gaza Strip and launched bombardments of the enclave and some areas in Lebanon and Syria, as well as a ground operation against Hamas in the Gaza Strip. Clashes are also reported in the West Bank.

In the light of the ongoing military operation, the global community has been exerting mounting pressure on the Israeli government, calling for a soonest ceasefire in the enclave and urging Israel to abandon its plans of invading Rafah. The Israeli leadership insists that the operation in Rafah is necessary for achieving a "total victory" and defeating Hamas military units in the Gaza Strip.

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Israeli-Palestinian conflict

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