Al Jazeera’s Safwat al-Kahlout, reporting from Gaza, said the intensity of Israeli air raids in the last couple of hours, coupled with the collapse in communication, is an indication that something “bigger” is about to happen in Gaza.
While air raids continue to hit areas in northern Gaza’s Jabaliya and Beit Lahiya, they have also been targeting the eastern side of Gaza City, al-Kahlout said.
“This is an indication, from our previous experience … either they are preparing for something bigger – could be a ground operation – or that ongoing negotiations to swap the prisoners is about to achieve something.”
People are currently unable to contact each other “to make sure that they are still alive,” al-Kahlout said. “This is the [type of] language that people are using – are you still alive?”
The Israeli military spokesperson Daniel Hagari is speaking now, he says that Israeli ground operations in Gaza are expanding, as the bombing of the enclave intensifies tonight.
On October 7, Hamas launched its biggest operation against Israel in years in a surprise offensive, dubbed Operation Al-Aqsa Storm, in response to the occupying regime’s intensified crimes against the Palestinian people.
Since then, Israel has pressed ahead with a relentless bombardment of Gaza. The death toll in Gaza since the start of Israeli aggression has reached over 7,000 with more than 18,000 wounded.
Tel Aviv has also blocked water, food, and electricity to Gaza, plunging the besieged territory into a humanitarian crisis.
RHM/PR