‘With God’s will we will remain steadfast,’ Gazan on expansion of Israeli military operation

Record ID: 1987725

  • Title: ‘With God’s will we will remain steadfast,’ Gazan on expansion of Israeli military operation
  • Date: 2nd April 2025
  • Summary: KHAN YOUNIS, GAZA (APRIL 2, 2025) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF PEOPLE IN STREET VARIOUS OF MAN WITH CAST ON FOOT WALKING WITH CRUTCH (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) DISPLACED PALESTINIAN, AMER AL FARRA, SAYING: “The expansion of the operation, what more can he do to us? The only thing left is to drop a nuclear bomb on the Gaza Strip and to relieve residents. There is no food or drinks, (ther
  • Embargoed:
  • Keywords: CEASEFIRE GAZA HAMAS ISRAEL
  • Location: KHAN YOUNIS, GAZA
  • City: KHAN YOUNIS, GAZA
  • Country: Palestinian Occupied Territory
  • Topics: Conflicts/War/Peace,Middle East
  • Reuters ID: LVA001355502042025RP1
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text: “With God’s will we will remain steadfast and resistant on our land,” displaced Palestinian Amer Al Farra said on Wednesday (April 2) in response to Israeli announcement of a major expansion of military operations in Gaza.
    “We will not be externally displaced,” Al Farra added.
    Israel announced a major expansion of military operations in Gaza saying large areas of the enclave would be seized and added to its security zones, accompanied by large-scale evacuations of the population.
    In a statement, Defence Minister Israel Katz said evacuations would take place from areas where there was fighting, while urging Gazans to eliminate Hamas and return Israeli hostages as the only way to end the war.
    He said the operation would clear out militants and infrastructure "and seize large areas that will be added to the security zones of the State of Israel."
    The Israeli military had already issued evacuation warnings to Gazans living around the southern city of Rafah and towards the city of Khan Younis, telling them to move to the Al-Mawasi area on the shore, previously designated a humanitarian zone.
    Israel's Army Radio said the 36th division, sent to the Southern Command area last month to prepare for operations in Gaza, would take part in the operation, which came after a wave of strikes was reported overnight.
    The Palestinian civil defense agency said at least 12 bodies had been recovered by its teams in Khan Younis and Palestinian radio reported that the area around Rafah was almost completely empty following the evacuation orders.
    Katz's statement did not make clear how much land Israel intends to seize or whether the move represented a permanent annexation of territory, which would add further pressure on a population in Gaza already living in one of the most crowded areas in the world.
    According to the Israeli rights group Gisha, Israel has already taken control of some 62 square kilometers or around 17% of the total area of Gaza, as part of a buffer zone around the edges of the enclave.
    Seizing the buffer zone, which contains infrastructure including wells, sewage pumping stations, and wastewater treatment facilities as well as a significant part of Gaza's agricultural land, would also increase pressure on the enclave's ability to sustain itself.
    At the same time, Israeli leaders have said they plan to facilitate voluntary departure of Palestinians from the enclave, after U.S. President Donald Trump called for it to be permanently evacuated and redeveloped as a coastal resort under U.S. control.
    Katz's remarks came after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu repeated calls for Hamas to disarm and said the application of military pressure was the best way to get back the remaining 59 hostages.
    (Production: Hatem Khaled, Bassam Masoud, Hams Rabah)
  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
  • Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2025. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
  • Usage Terms/Restrictions: None
Register