Israel is beginning a major expansion of its military operation in Gaza and will seize large areas of the territory, according to the country’s Defence Minister.
Middle East Correspondent with Sky News Alistair Bunkall told Newstalk Breakfast that Israel is looking to cut off the south of Gaza, supposedly to squeeze out Hamas.
"Just over two weeks ago Israel broke the ceasefire; they'll dispute that of course, but essentially Israel resumed its strikes on Gaza and steadily they have been expanding that military operation, issuing more evacuation orders for parts of Gaza," he said.
"Yesterday they said that they were sending an extra division of IDF soldiers into Gaza, there's an evacuation order for the entirety of Rafah in the south.
"They said that they were going to create effectively a new corrdior to the north of Rafah, so cutting off the south of Gaza to squeeze Hamas.
"And this threat that they were going to be there indefinitely, perhaps permanently, to take land to create something of a buffer zone."
Mr Bunkall said, in his opinion, the White House in the US has "taken their eye off Gaza", which has allowed Israel to "do what they want".
You can listen back to the full interview here:
Main image: Displaced Palestinians flee from Shijaiyah, Gaza, on Thursday, April 3, 2025, after the Israeli military issued evacuation orders in the area. (AP Photo/Jehad Alshrafi)
