Israeli troops have left southern Gaza, and some Palestinians returned to the area, where there was a sense of horror at the scope of destruction.
The Israeli military’s departure from southern Gaza over the weekend has left the devastated territory in a state of suspense as active fighting there receded on Monday to its lowest ebb since a brief truce with Hamas in November.
But even as some observers hoped Israel’s withdrawal from the area might portend a new cease-fire, both Hamas and Israeli officials suggested the war was not yet over.
Analysts said the withdrawal of Israeli troops suggested only that the war had entered a new phase, one in which Israel would continue to mount small-scale operations across Gaza to prevent Hamas’s resurgence. That strategy, they said, could occupy a middle ground between reaching a lasting truce with Hamas and ordering a major ground assault into Rafah, Hamas’s last stronghold in southern Gaza where more than one million Palestinians have taken refuge.
In a statement on Monday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel said that while Israel was still pursuing a deal to secure the release of its hostages in Gaza, it was also seeking “total victory over Hamas.”
“This victory requires entering Rafah and eliminating the terrorist battalions there,” Mr. Netanyahu said. “This will happen; there is a date.” He did not specify the date.
By withdrawing now without having fulfilled its stated mission of eliminating Hamas and without empowering an alternative Palestinian leadership, Israel has left behind a power vacuum in Gaza, in which Hamas could regroup and re-emerge as a military force across much of the territory.
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Erez
crossing
Sderot
WEST
BANK
GAZA
STRIP
Israel
Jabaliya
Mediterranean
Sea
Gaza
City
Netivot
The remaining troops inside
Gaza are mostly guarding
a supply road known as the
Netzarim corridor, as well as
a buffer zone Israel created
along the border by
destroying Palestinian
buildings.
Deir
al Balah
ISRAEL
GAZA
STRIP
Khan
Younis
The Israeli military said it
withdrew a division from
the city of Khan Younis.
The military was preparing
for “follow-up missions”
that included Rafah, the
defense minister said.
Rafah
Rafah
crossing
EGYPT
Kerem Shalom
crossing
N
5 miles
Erez crossing
WEST
BANK
GAZA
STRIP
Israel
Jabaliya
Gaza
City
The remaining troops inside
Gaza are mostly guarding
a supply road known as the
Netzarim corridor, as well as
a buffer zone Israel created
along the border by
destroying Palestinian
buildings.
GAZA
STRIP
ISRAEL
Deir
al Balah
The Israeli military said it
withdrew a division from
the city of Khan Younis.
Khan
Younis
Rafah
The military was preparing
for “follow-up missions”
that included Rafah, the
defense minister said.
EGYPT
Rafah
crossing
Kerem Shalom
crossing
N
5 miles
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Source: Elections - nytimes.com
