DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip 鈥 Israeli troops launched a new assault Friday into the southern Gaza city of Khan Younis, targeting Hamas fighters who the military claims still operate there despite repeated offensives, as American, Qatari and Egyptian mediators renewed their push for Israel and Hamas to reach a cease-fire deal.
Israeli evacuation orders triggered yet another exodus of Palestinians from the heavily destroyed eastern districts of Khan Younis, where many had just returned less than two weeks ago 鈥 after the Israeli military鈥檚 last incursion into the city in July.
Thousands fled Thursday, carrying essentials like small gas cylinders, mattresses, tents, backpacks and blankets.
Officials from Israel and the United States have said they believe Yahya Sinwar, Hamas鈥 newly named top leader and one of the architects of the Oct. 7 attack on Israel, could be hiding in tunnels under Khan Younis.
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The military said Friday its warplanes struck 30 Hamas targets in the city, including fighters and weapons storage sites. It said troops were searching for Hamas tunnels and other infrastructure while engaging in combat 鈥渁bove and below ground.鈥
After 10 months of war in Gaza, the mediators鈥 push aims to resume indirect negotiations for a cease-fire that have been on hold since Sinwar鈥檚 predecessor, Ismail Haniyeh, was assassinated in a presumed Israeli blast in Tehran on July 31.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu鈥檚 office confirmed Thursday that it would send negotiators to talks that mediators have called for on Aug. 15, to be held in either Qatar鈥檚 capital of Doha or Egypt鈥檚 capital of Cairo.
There was no immediate response from Hamas, which announced Tuesday that Sinwar, the group鈥檚 leader in Gaza, would replace Haniyeh as the group鈥檚 top leader. Haniyeh previously served as the key interlocutor in the negotiations.
Haniyeh鈥檚 killing and that of a top Hezbollah commander in an Israeli airstrike in Beirut brought vows of retaliation from Hezbollah and Iran.
The head of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard鈥檚 Quds Force, which leads the guard鈥檚 operations around the region, repeated promises of retaliation in a letter to Sinwar, a copy of which was seen by The Associated Press. 鈥淲e are preparing to avenge his blood,鈥 Ismail Qaani wrote, referring to Haniyeh.
International diplomats have been scrambling to prevent an escalation and to seal a deal to stop the fighting in Gaza and release the hostages still captive in the enclave.
In a joint statement, the United States, Egypt and Qatar called for the new round of talks, to be held either in Doha or Cairo, and pressed both sides to move ahead.
鈥淭here is no further time to waste nor excuses from any party for further delay,鈥 they said, adding that the negotiators have already finalized a framework for the deal.
They said mediators were prepared to present a final compromise 鈥渢hat resolves the remaining implementation issues in a manner that meets the expectations of all parties.鈥 It did not elaborate on what that would look like.
A key question hanging over the talks is the impact of Sinwar鈥檚 elevation to Hamas鈥 top leadership post. Seen as a hard-liner within the group, Sinwar has been in deep hiding in Gaza throughout the war as Israel vows to kill him.
Sinwar has already been closely involved in negotiations from behind the scenes. Hamas officials and mediators have said Hamas negotiators regularly sought his approval on the group鈥檚 positions as it pressed for guarantees that a deal would bring a complete end to the war and withdrawal of all Israeli troops from Gaza, in return for the release of all hostages.
Israel says it aims to destroy Hamas after the Oct. 7 attack, in which militants from Gaza stormed into southern Israel, killing around 1,200 people and abducting 250 others. After a round of release exchanges in November, Israel says 111 hostages remain in Gaza, including 39 bodies.
Its campaign in Gaza has killed more than 39,600 Palestinians and wounded more than 91,700 others. More than 1.9 million of Gaza鈥檚 pre-war population of 2.3 million have been driven from their homes, fleeing repeatedly across the territory to escape offensives. Most are now crowded into ramshackle tent camps in an area about 50 square kilometers (19 square miles) on the Gaza coast.
With sanitation systems collapsed, diseases have run rampant, health officials say, and humanitarian groups are trying to feed the population. The United Nations says a half-million Palestinians facing catastrophic levels of food insecurity.
Israel鈥檚 military said Friday that its forces were still battling Hamas fighters in Gaza鈥檚 southernmost city, Rafah, in an assault there that has lasted three months. Its new assault in Khan Younis, where it has waged multiple offensives this year, drove more people into the camps and neighboring areas.
Ghazi Abu Daka, one of the evacuees, told the AP that he and his family have had to flee eastern Khan Younis four times now.
鈥淓very day there is war. Every day there are rockets. There is no safe place in the eastern area. Now, we are displaced in the streets and don鈥檛 know where to go,鈥 he said as he carried his son, a piece of cloth on his head to protect him from the heat.
Yasser Abu Alyan, another evacuee, said he was displaced around six times from the Beni Seheila area east of the city. He said he took nothing with him except his two little girls: 鈥淓verything is gone.鈥
Associated Press writer Bassem Mroue in Beirut contributed to this report.
Updated at 9:11 a.m.