Thousands of Israeli troops will withdraw from Gaza within weeks – despite heavy fighting in the south and other war- fronts intensifying with Syria and Hezbollah.
It is believed Israel is moving to a low-intensity conflict with Hamas, with troops rotating and the country facing increasing cross-border threats from Syria and Lebanon.
As ferocious fighting in central and southern Gaza continued most of the Strip’s 2.3 million people have fled to the south and over 22, 000 Palestinians have died.
Two thirds of those killed in Gaza were women and children and more than 100 Israeli hostages are believed still to be hidden in the enclave.
Several Israeli airstrikes hit the outskirts of Damascus early Tuesday, thought to be Hezbollah and Iranian military targets threatening the Jewish state.
Syrian state news agency SANA said the strikes came from the direction of the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights at around 4:30 a.m.
British war monitor The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the airstrikes hit a Syrian army artillery unit where members of the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah were.
On the rare occasions Syria acknowledges the strikes, Israel usually says it’s targeting Iranian-backed groups there that have backed President Bashar Assad’s government.
The observatory said Israel carried out 76 attacks on Syrian territory in 2023.
And the Israeli military said it had identified five missiles launched from Syria that fell in open areas.
Israel confirmed some of its forces were leaving Gaza.
Army spokesman Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari this was not a sign of a gradual withdrawal.
He said: “The objectives of the war require prolonged fighting and we are preparing accordingly.”
Israeli PM Bejamin Netanyahu’s spokesman Mark Regev said: “We have to be able to rotate our troops in and out as needed.”
It came as cross-border fighting between Israeli troops and Hezbollah in South Lebanon continued.
The multi-front violence follows Israel’s attack on Gaza-based Hamas which killed around 1,200 people in a major raid on southern Israel on Oct. 7.
In the same atrocity around 240 people were taken hostage, although around 110 have been released in prisoner exchanges and others have died in fighting.
Israeli forces killed four Palestinian militants early on Tuesday during a raid in the West Bank, in the latest violence in the occupied territory.
The military said the men opened fire on troops raiding the village of Azzun, in the northern West Bank, before barricading themselves in a home.
Israel has stepped up raids across the West Bank since Oct. 7 and more than 300 Palestinians have been killed there since.
And the UK confirmed its first maritime shipment of nearly 100 tons of thermal blankets, shelter packs and medical supplies for Gaza has reached Egypt’s Port Said.
Royal Fleet Auxiliary ship Lyme Bay delivered the aid after departing from Cyprus.
The aid will be distributed by the U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees.
