The announcement comes after Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel intended to take full control of Gaza and hand over the territory’s governance to friendly Arab forces Welcome to our live coverage of the Israel-Gaza war. Benjamin Netanyahu’s office says Israel’s security cabinet has approved a plan to take over Gaza City after he earlier said the country planned to take full control of the Palestinian territory. Before the security cabinet meeting, Netanyahu was asked on Fox News if Israel would “take control of all of Gaza” and he replied: “We intend to, in order to assure our security, remove Hamas there, enable the population to be free of Gaza.” “We don’t want to keep it. We want to have a security perimeter,” Netanyahu said. “We want to hand it over to Arab forces that will govern it properly without threatening us and giving Gazans a good life.” Israeli media reported that Netanyahu was hoping to obtain approval for fully controlling Gaza at the security cabinet meeting, the plan would mean sending ground troops into the few areas of the strip that have not been totally destroyed – roughly 25% of the territory where many of its 2 million people have sought refuge. Israel is reportedly preparing a two-phase operation aimed at seizing control of Gaza City, with plans to evacuate about 1 million residents – half of Gaza’s population – in what officials describe as a temporary measure to establish civilian infrastructure in central Gaza. The proposal is being framed as a limited operation rather than a full invasion, apparently to placate military chiefs wary of long-term occupation, according to Israel’s Channel 12. The chief of staff, Lt Gen Eyal Zamir, has reportedly warned that occupying Gaza would plunge Israel into a “black hole” of prolonged insurgency, humanitarian responsibility and heightened risk to hostages. At least 42 Palestinians were killed in Israeli airstrikes and shootings across southern Gaza on Thursday, according to local hospitals. Of the 42, at least 13 were seeking aid in an Israeli military zone in southern Gaza where UN aid convoys are regularly overwhelmed by looters and desperate crowds. The World Health Organization said on Thursday that 99 people were known to have died from malnutrition in Gaza this year and the figure was probably an underestimate, amid famine warnings from UN agencies. The families of the roughly 20 remaining living hostages held in Gaza have called for Israelis to protest against the government and a decision they fear would endanger the lives of their loved ones. Continue reading...