Israel said late Saturday that some Hamas fighters had surrendered in the northern Gaza Strip, while it intensified its offensive in the south as it tried to root out leaders of the group that it says are responsible for the attack on October 7.
The Israeli military did not say how many Hamas operatives it was holding but said they had surrendered in and near Gaza City, in the Shajaiya and Jabaliya neighbourhoods. The claims came two days after Israel said it had detained hundreds of terrorism suspects.
Videos have appeared on social media and on Israeli news channels in recent days showing what have been described as Hamas fighters detained by Israeli forces. Those videos could not be independently verified, and there were accounts of ordinary Gazans among what hadbeen described as Hamas fighters.
About 15 miles south of Gaza City, in Khan Younis, the Israeli military ordered people to evacuate “urgently” from the city centre, publishing a map of the area that it appeared to plan to target. The expansion of Israel’s ground operation has forced many people who had already been displaced to again move.
New York Times News Service
