Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said on Friday he had approved the military’s plan for an operation in Rafah, where most of war-battered Gaza’s population has sought refuge.
Netanyahu “approved the plans for action in Rafah,” his office said in a statement, without giving details or a timeline.
The statement said the military was “prepared for the operational side and for the evacuation of the population.”
Rafah is the last major population centre yet to be subjected to a ground assault during Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza, which was triggered by the militants’ unprecedented attack on southern Israel on October 7.
The attack resulted in the deaths of about 1,160 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally of Israeli figures.
Israel’s retaliatory military campaign to eliminate Hamas has killed at least 31,490 people, mostly women and children, according to the health ministry in the Hamas-run territory.
US President Joe Biden, who has supported Israel during the war, said recently that an Israeli invasion of Rafah would be a “red line” without credible civilian protection plans in place.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said during a visit to Vienna on Friday that Washington had not seen any plans for a Rafah operation, but reiterated that it wants a “clear and implementable plan” to ensure civilians are “out of harm’s way”.
