The Israeli government has now formally declared war on Hamas.
Israel’s vaunted military and intelligence apparatus was caught completely off guard, bringing heavy battles to its streets for the first time in decades.JERUSALEM, Israel — Israel vowed to lay total siege to the Gaza Strip on Monday, as its military scoured the country’s south for militants, guarded breaches in its border fence and pounded the impoverished, Hamas-ruled territory in the wake of an , the military said the fighting had largely died down for now.
Palestinian militant groups claimed to be holding over 130 people captured in Israel and dragged to Gaza. The armed wing of Hamas said on its Telegram channel that four of them were killed in Israeli airstrikes.In an effort to further ratchet up the pressure on Hamas, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant ordered a “complete siege” of Gaza, saying authorities would cut electricity and prevent food and fuel from entering the territory.
But he added that militants may remain inside Israel, and said that 15 of 24 border communities have been evacuated, with the rest expected to be emptied in the coming day.Israelis inspect a damaged residential building after it was hit by a rocket fired from the Gaza Strip, in Ashkelon, Israel, Monday, Oct. 9, 2023.
Egypt is trying to mediate an initial deal in which Hamas would release captive women in exchange for Israel freeing female Palestinian prisoners, Egypt’s state-owned Al-Ahram newspaper reported. It said that if both sides agree, there would be a temporary cease-fire to facilitate the exchange. In its airstrikes, Israel's military said it leveled much of Beit Hanoun — a town in northeast Gaza that military spokesperson Hagari said Hamas was using the as a staging ground for attacks. There was no immediate word on casualties, and most of the community’s population of tens of thousands likely fled beforehand.
In Gaza, where the U.N. said more than 123,000 people had been displaced by the fighting, residents feared further escalation.
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