Israel decides to continue Rafah ops, striking north and south of Gaza Strip Tensions soar again

The Israel Defense Forces continued to operate in the Gaza Strip on the night of May 6 to 7.  

Information on the course of hostilities during the night came exclusively from sources in Gaza.

Last night, the IDF struck targets in the north and south of the Gaza Strip, according to NEWSru.co.il.

An operation is underway in Rafah. The intensity of the fighting in Gaza has reportedly increased dramatically.

In the north of the Strip: The Israel Air Force (IAF) attacked a house of the Al-Durailmi family in Al-Sabra neighbourhood in southern Gaza City, there were killed and wounded; artillery shelled Gaza City; the IAF attacked several houses in Al-Atatra neighbourhood in Bayt Lahiya city; The IAF struck targets east of Bayt Hanoun and Jabaliya; the IAF and artillery struck targets in Jabaliya; in response to the shelling of Sderot, troops attacked militant positions in the northern Gaza Strip.

In the south of the Strip: The IAF hit a house of the Al-Darbi family in the Tal al-Sultan neighbourhood, in western Rafah, at least four killed, 18 wounded; the IAF and artillery hit targets on the eastern outskirts of Rafah all night; the IAF hit a house in the Al-Geneina neighbourhood in eastern Rafah, at least four killed; An airstrike hit a house in central Rafah; tank guns and helicopter gunships shelled eastern neighbourhoods of Rafah; the IAF struck the Al-Tanur area; and Israeli artillery shelled the area in the vicinity of the Rafah crossing.

The Gaza Interior Ministry (a Hamas entity) reports that a well-known footballer (goalkeeper), Mahmoud Osama Al-Jazzar, was killed in a strike on a building in Rafah, in the southern part of the Strip. Whether he was a fighter of any of the terrorist organisations, the Hamas Interior Ministry does not say.

Gaza sources: The Israeli military is preparing to "take over" the Rafah crossing on the Palestinian side of the border with Egypt. Arab media: Israel notified the Egyptian Border Crossings Authority that IDF forces do not intend to occupy the crossing, after a security operation in the area of the crossing, the Israeli military will leave the area of the crossing in the morning of May 7.

The IDF has yet to comment on the fighting in Gaza on May 7.

The attacks came after the Israeli military cabinet unanimously decided to continue the military operation in the town of Rafah in the south of the Gaza Strip, according to a statement by the office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

"The War Cabinet unanimously decided that Israel continues the operation in Rafah in order to exert military pressure on Hamas, facilitate the release of our hostages and achieve other war objectives," the statement said.

At the same time, the office said Israel still intends to send a delegation to Cairo to continue negotiations on Gaza.

Prior to the decision to continue the attacks on the southern Gaza Strip town of Rafah, Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Galant, at a meeting with the families of the abductees, stressed Israel would be forced to launch an operation in Rafah due to the refusal of representatives of the radical Palestinian Hamas movement to reject offers of a deal to release hostages held in the enclave.

"The action to return your loved ones has been ongoing all along, even right now. We intend to achieve the goals of the war, but Hamas' rejection of any plan that would allow the return of the hostages forces us to launch the Rafah operation," Galant said.

"Even after the start of the Rafah operation, all efforts to bring the hostages home will continue," the minister added. However, he did not give an exact timeframe for the start of hostilities.

Meanwhile, the Palestinian Hamas movement has informed Egyptian and Qatari mediators that it approves the draft agreement they proposed on establishing a truce in the Gaza Strip.

"Hamas politburo chief Ismail Haniyeh held telephone talks with Qatari Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thaniand the head of Egypt's General Intelligence Directorate, Abbas Kamel. During the conversation, he notified the mediators that the movement had approved the draft ceasefire agreement they had proposed," the document said. There is no information about the exact grounds on which the radicals agreed to the proposal, as well as whether the draft approved by Hamas differs from the one agreed with Israel.

The last official ceasefire proposal agreed with the Jewish State was handed over to Hamas by Egypt on 27 April. The initiative at that time envisaged the release of 20 to 40 hostages held by radicals in Gaza in exchange for a ceasefire in the enclave.

Meanwhile, the IDF Press Service reported that the Israeli military established control at the Rafah crossing from the Gaza Strip.

The statement said that the operation was carried out by the 162nd Army Division and the 401st Armoured Brigade together with special forces. According to the statement, more than 150 targets were destroyed and about 20 militants were eliminated on Tuesday night.

The Israeli army also discovered and took control of three tunnels. The statement said they were part of defence installations and do not cross the border with Egypt.