The Israel Defense Forces spokesperson Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari has said Israeli troops will advance to anywhere Hamas is found, including the southern part of the Gaza Strip.
In recent days, there have been growing indications that a ground offensive into the southern part of the enclave could be imminent.
Israeli leaders have declared the northern part of Gaza, including Gaza City, is now under Israel’s control. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has offered little information about his post-military operation plan for Gaza.
Meanwhile, more fuel was allowed into Gaza Friday as water and sewage systems are on the verge of collapsing, Israel's national security adviser Tzachi Hanegbi said. Lack of fuel has also contributed to the dire situation in hospitals, where doctors said ICU patients have died and surgeries have stopped due to the lack of electricity.
Also, negotiating parties are grinding away to try to reach an agreement to release hostages in Gaza. It comes as at least two hostages were found dead in the enclave over the past two days, the Israeli military said.
Here are the key things to know:
- The latest on Gaza's hospitals: Out of the 35 hospitals in Gaza, 26 have shut down due to damage from bombardment or a lack of fuel, according to the Palestinian Authority's Ministry of Health in Ramallah, citing medical sources from the Hamas-controlled enclave. Most of the intensive care unit patients at Al-Shifa hospital, who were on ventilators due to the lack of fuel and oxygen, have died, a doctor there told Al-Jazeera. The hospital, which is Gaza's largest, is grappling with a severe shortage of basic necessities — including no water and no electricity in the main buildings of the compound, Dr. Ahmad Mofeed Al-Mokhalalati said.
- Fuel enters Gaza: Two fuel tankers entered Gaza through the Rafah crossing Friday, an Israeli government agency said. It comes shortly after Israel's war cabinet approved a measure to allow for regular deliveries to the besieged enclave, following weeks of pressure from US officials and other global leaders. According to a US State Department official, most of the fuel will be deposited into a depot in Rafah, where it will be used by UN relief agency trucks and for water and sewage system support, waste disposal, bakeries and hospitals in southern Gaza. A smaller portion will be used to power generators for cell phones and internet. Some members of the Israeli government have already criticized the decision.
- Drinking water dwindles: A UN human rights official has called on Israel to stop using water as a “weapon of war” in Gaza. Dehydration and waterborne diseases are now surging in the enclave, Pedro Arrojo-Agudo, the UN special rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation, said. For days, humanitarian organizations, including the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), have emphasized the necessity of fuel to operate desalination stations and water pumps in Gaza. According to UNRWA, roughly 70% of people in Gaza are now drinking “salinized and contaminated” water.
- Bodies of hostages found: The Israeli military said Friday that it retrieved the body of a second Israeli hostage from a structure near the Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City. Before that, the IDF said Thursday it had recovered the body of Yehudit Waiss, a 65-year-old Israeli woman also found near the hospital. Meanwhile, a new video appearing to show an Israeli hostage held in Gaza has emerged online. It appeared on the Telegram channel of Hamas’ military wing, the Al Qassam Brigades.
- Calls for action: The Israeli military's official estimate of hostages being held in Gaza is 237. Some of the families of those missing and kidnapped by Hamas marched from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem on Friday, demanding that the government guarantee hostages are returned safely. Pope Francis plans to meet with families of Israeli hostages and Palestinians, the Vatican's press office said Friday. The Pope will speak to these groups separately, and the Vatican said the meetings are “of an exclusively humanitarian nature.”
- The latest on hostage negotiations: Israel, Hamas and the US, with Qatar mediating, have been working to reach an agreement on a number of sticking points to release hostages. Hamas has demanded that Israel stop flying surveillance drones over Gaza as part of its request that Israel pause its military operations, according to two Israeli officials and third source familiar with the ongoing negotiations. The sources suggested Israel is unlikely to accept that request, since it would mean losing track of the movements of Hamas operatives, including any efforts to move the hostages within the Gaza Strip.
- Calls for investigation: The countries of South Africa, Bangladesh, Bolivia, Comoros and Djibouti submitted a referral to the International Criminal Court (ICC) to investigate whether crimes may have been committed in Palestinian territories, ICC prosecutor Karim Khan said. A group of independent United Nations human rights experts also said Thursday that Israel's actions in Gaza "point to a genocide in the making." The Israeli foreign ministry rejected the allegation, saying in a statement it was Hamas that put Gazans "in harms way."