Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed Israel will “stand alone” if it has to in its war against Hamas, after the US threatened to stop sending some weapons to its ally.
President Joe Biden earlier said the US would halt offensive munitions supplies to Israel if it attacks the southern Gaza city of Rafah.
The Israeli prime minister said in a video statement on Thursday: “If we have to stand alone, we will stand alone.
“If we need to, we will fight with our fingernails. But we have much more than fingernails.”
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An unnamed Israeli official said Israel will press ahead with its operation in Rafah and elsewhere in the Gaza Strip, Reuters reported.
And chief armed forces spokesperson Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari said Israel’s military has the munitions it requires for the operations.
Israel claims four battalions of Hamas fighters are hiding in Rafah which it has vowed to “eliminate”. But Mr Netanyahu has not yet ordered his troops to enter the city.
In recent months, its population has been swelled by hundreds of thousands of civilians seeking refuge from bombardments elsewhere in the Palestinian territory.
Palestinian witnesses said Israeli tanks and warplanes have bombarded areas of Rafah on Thursday, according to Reuters.
Palestinian militant groups Hamas and Islamic Jihad also said their fighters fired anti-tank rockets and mortars at Israeli tanks gathered on the eastern outskirts of the city.
The US State Department said it believes a major offensive in Rafah would weaken Israel’s position in hostage talks.
Washington is discussing with the Israelis amendments to a ceasefire proposal submitted by Hamas, state department spokesperson Matthew Miller said, adding they were working to finalise the text of an agreement but that work was “incredibly difficult”.
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