The Israeli military has withdrawn more ground troops from the southern Gaza Strip, leaving just one brigade there six months after the start of its offensive, a spokesperson for the force said on Sunday.
\nThe military, which has been reducing numbers in Gaza since the start of the year to relieve reservists and under growing pressure from its ally Washington to improve the humanitarian situation, did not give details on its reasons or the number of soldiers involved.
\nThe move comes as Egypt prepares to host a new round of talks aimed at reaching a ceasefire and hostage release deal.
\nIt was unclear whether the withdrawal would delay a long-threatened incursion into the southern Gaza city of Rafah, which Israeli leaders have said is needed to eliminate the Islamist Hamas movement ruling the Palestinian enclave.
\nPalestinian residents of the southern Gaza city of Khan Younis, which has come under Israeli bombardment in recent months, said they had seen Israeli forces leaving the centre of the city and retreating to the eastern districts.
\nIsrael\u2019s offensive, launched after the shock attack by Hamas on Israel on Oct. 7, has focused in the past months on the south of the Gaza Strip.
\nMore than 250 hostages were seized and some 1,200 people killed during the Oct. 7 attack, according to Israeli tallies. More than 33,100 Palestinians have been killed in the Israeli offensive, according to the health ministry in Gaza.
\nRafah has become the last refuge for more than a million Palestinians sheltering in the territory near the border with Egypt.
\nFOCUS ON LEBANON, IRAN
\nSix months of combat in Gaza has strained the Israeli military and the country\u2019s economy. Many Israeli security experts say they now see a greater threat from Iran-back Hezbollah in Lebanon.
\nIsrael is also on alert for a possible retaliatory attack from Iran in reaction to the killing of Iranian generals on April 1.
\nIsrael\u2019s overall Gaza troop drawdown comes amid increased pressure from the United States, where President Joe Biden has demanded that Israel improve humanitarian conditions in Gaza and work towards a ceasefire, saying that U.S. support could be hinged on it.
\nThat was the first time Biden, a staunch supporter of Israel, has sought to leverage U.S. aid as a way to influence Israeli military behaviour.
\nBiden has also urged the leaders of Egypt and Qatar to pressure Hamas to agree to a ceasefire and hostage deal ahead of a fresh round of talks in Cairo.
\nMore than 130 hostages are still in captivity in Gaza, and Israel says it will not stop its offensive until they are all returned.
\nThere was no confirmation from Israel that it would send a delegation to the Cairo negotiations.
\n(Reuterfs)Israeli military withdrawal. Israeli military, ground troops, Gaza Strip<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The Israeli military has withdrawn ground troops from the southern Gaza Strip, leaving just one brigade there. The move comes as Egypt prepares to host talks for a ceasefire and hostage release deal. The offensive in Gaza has focused on the south, with more than 33,100 Palestinians killed. Israel is facing threats from Hezbollah in Lebanon and potential retaliation from Iran. President Biden has demanded Israel improve humanitarian conditions and work towards a ceasefire, leveraging U.S. aid to influence Israeli military behavior. More than 130 hostages are still in captivity in Gaza.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":7223,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"Default","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[122,383,492,1024,1423,3531,26,2259,145,895,5409,298,210,2581,504,5138,2180,1025,1235,146,299,3270,1350,5336,756,896,3940,412,3504,1864,1012,462,4843,3360,1670,3775,837,1354,827,1358,1026,1846,544,3519,4568,18],"class_list":["post-7222","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-other","tag-aid","tag-attack","tag-biden","tag-cairo","tag-ceasefire","tag-delegation","tag-economy","tag-egypt","tag-gaza","tag-gaza-strip","tag-ground-troops","tag-hamas","tag-health","tag-health-ministry","tag-hezbollah","tag-hostage","tag-hostage-deal","tag-hostages","tag-humanitarian","tag-iran","tag-israel","tag-israeli-forces","tag-israeli-military","tag-israeli-offensive","tag-joe-biden","tag-khan-younis","tag-leaders","tag-lebanon","tag-military","tag-negotiations","tag-numbers","tag-palestinians","tag-president","tag-president-biden","tag-president-joe-biden","tag-pressure","tag-rafah","tag-release","tag-security","tag-support","tag-talks","tag-threat","tag-united-states","tag-washington","tag-withdrawal","tag-world"],"acf":{"keyphrase":"","keywords":"","sourceimg":"","country-category":""},"yoast_head":"\n