Israel will mobilise thousands of reserve soldiers to bolster its campaign against Hamas in the Gaza Strip, the military announced on Saturday night, as the country appeared poised to expand its offensive in the Palestinian enclave.
The call-up suggested the Israeli government was preparing to shift tactics in an attempt to force Hamas to agree to its terms for an end to the war. It is unclear whether that would prove successful, as Hamas has fought a determined insurgency through more than a year of Israeli operations in Gaza.
Israel’s security cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, was set to meet on Sunday to formally sign off on broadening the campaign in Gaza, said an Israeli official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to speak publicly.
The mobilisation announcement compounded fears in Gaza, where Israel has barred food, medicine and other humanitarian aid from entering for over two months. Reeling from more than a year of hunger and fighting, many are still displaced or living amid the rubble of their homes.
After Israel ended a two-month cease-fire with Hamas in mid-March, Israeli forces resumed attacking across the enclave. But while Israel jets have regularly bombarded Gaza from the air, Israeli ground forces slowed their advance after seizing some territory.
New York Times News Service
