Israeli Forces Begin to Advance Into the Southern Gaza Strip

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The Facts

  • Initial reports from Israeli army radio on Monday indicate that Israeli forces have begun to advance into the southern regions of the Gaza Strip, with verified reports that Israeli tanks are operating near the southern city of Khan Younis. An Israel Defense Forces (IDF) spokesman confirmed that Israel "continues to expand the ground incursion" across all of Gaza.

  • Unicef spokesman James Elder reported that Israel's bombardment of the south of the strip was the worst the region had seen since the war began; a local source told AFP that Israeli forces cut the Salah al-Din road, dividing it between Deir al-Balah and Khan Younis. An Israeli spokesman said that Israel did not intend to permanently displace Palestinians from their homes.

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The Spin

Pro-Israel narrative

Though this has been a tragic war, Israel cannot allow Hamas to survive. Hamas seized upon last week's temporary pause to mark Israeli positions and prepare itself for continued attacks on Israeli forces in Gaza. Indeed, the pace at which Israeli forces maneuvered in Gaza threw Hamas's military leadership off-kilter, and Israel will have to work intelligently in its campaign in the south of the strip to fully eliminate the terrorist group so it can never launch an attack like Oct. 7 again.

Jerusalem Post

Pro-Palestine narrative

Israel continues to demonstrate that its war is not against Hamas but against the Palestinian people as a whole. Nowhere in Gaza is safe, and Israel has effectively rendered the north of the strip unlivable. Unfortunately, the temporary ceasefire only gave civilians a few days of relative rest, and now Israel has returned to killing Palestinians at an unprecedented rate. The US, Israel's biggest ally, must exert more pressure to end the war.

Middle East Eye

Metaculus Prediction

Establishment split

CRITICAL

PRO

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