Satellite Images Show Israel Building Up Forces For A Possible Ground Invasion Of Gaza, Sources Say

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WASHINGTON — Commercial outer images show nan Israeli subject building up troops and instrumentality adjacent nan separator pinch Gaza that would support a imaginable caller crushed penetration of nan Palestinian enclave, according to 3 U.S. officials and a erstwhile charismatic who viewed nan imagery.

The images show unit movements and formations that nan 4 sources recognized arsenic signs of an imminent awesome crushed operation.

It is not clear whether nan Israelis really intend to statesman a caller violative successful Gaza aliases whether nan move is simply a negotiating aliases unit tactic.

If location is simply a caller subject operation, it could see efforts to retrieve hostages held by Hamas and grow humanitarian assistance successful areas extracurricular nan fighting, nan 3 U.S. officials and a personification briefed connected Israeli discussions said. Israeli troops person been conducting crushed operations successful Gaza since Oct. 27, 2023, pinch pauses during 2 ceasefires.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Thursday connected Fox News that Israel intended to return power of each of Gaza. “We intend to, successful bid to guarantee our security, region Hamas there, alteration nan organization to beryllium free of Gaza and to walk it to civilian governance that is not Hamas and not anyone advocating nan demolition of Israel. That’s what we want to do.”

Pressed again connected that point, specifically connected whether he meant Israel would “take power of nan full 26-mile Gaza Strip,” Netanyahu said: “Well, we don’t want to support it. We want to person a information perimeter. We don’t want to govern it.”

The unit buildup comes during a tense clip successful relations betwixt nan United States and Israel. On July 28, Netanyahu and President Donald Trump had a backstage telephone speech that devolved into shouting amid White House concerns complete really nan Gaza Humanitarian Fund, a U.S.- and Israel-backed alleviation effort, is working, according to a elder U.S. official, 2 erstwhile U.S. officials and a Western charismatic who were briefed connected nan matter.

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The caller flare-up of tensions betwixt Trump and Netanyahu began July 27. Appearing astatine an arena successful Jerusalem that day, Netanyahu said: “There is nary argumentation of starvation successful Gaza. And location is nary starvation successful Gaza.”

When Trump was asked astir those comments nan adjacent time during a travel to Scotland, he contradicted Netanyahu. He said that he had seen images of children successful Gaza who “look very hungry,” that location is “real starvation” location and that “you can’t clone that.”

Netanyahu past privately demanded a telephone telephone pinch Trump, nan elder U.S. charismatic and nan erstwhile U.S. charismatic briefed connected nan telephone said. The 2 leaders were connected wrong hours, those 2 officials said.

Netanyahu told Trump connected nan telephone that wide starvation successful Gaza is not existent and that it had been fabricated by Hamas, said nan elder U.S. official, 2 erstwhile U.S. officials and nan Western official, each of whom were briefed connected nan call. Trump interrupted Netanyahu and began yelling, they said, saying that he did not want to perceive that nan starvation is clone and that his aides had shown him impervious that children location are starving, they said.

White House officials declined to remark connected nan telephone call. Israeli officials declined to comment.

One of nan erstwhile U.S. officials briefed connected nan telephone described it arsenic “a direct, mostly one-way speech astir nan position of humanitarian aid” successful which Trump “was doing astir of nan talking.”

“The U.S. not only feels for illustration nan business is dire, but they ain it because of GHF,” nan erstwhile charismatic said, referring to nan Gaza Humanitarian Fund.

The telephone telephone prompted a travel to nan region past week by Steve Witkoff, nan U.S. typical envoy to nan Middle East, to find a unified way guardant successful nan war.

Israeli officials were pleased pinch Witkoff’s visit, according to nan Western charismatic and nan root briefed connected Israeli discussions. The Israelis viewed everything from his assemblage connection to nan questions he asked arsenic indicators that they were capable to efficaciously pass nan challenges Israel faces. The Israeli officials besides addressed world disapproval of GHF pinch Witkoff, explaining why, successful their opinion, immoderate critics want it to fail, nan root briefed connected Israeli discussions said.

GHF has been moving successful Gaza since May. It operates only successful circumstantial designated distribution sites that are acold distant from immoderate Palestinians who request food, starring to ample crowds that Israeli troops — who are stationed adjacent — person astatine times fired upon. As of precocious July, much than 1,000 Palestinians had been killed while seeking food, according to nan United Nations Office for nan Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. GHF has been boycotted by nan U.N., which has operated its ain assistance distribution web successful Gaza.

Witkoff pressed officials astir whether existent alleviation efforts tin meet ongoing request aliases should grow further, according to nan root briefed connected Israeli discussions.

Witkoff has since returned. He briefed Trump connected his sojourn complete meal Monday night, according to a White House official. Their chat included humanitarian assistance successful Gaza and Witkoff’s gathering pinch Israeli officials and hostage families.

Asked by reporters Tuesday whether he would support Israel’s occupying Gaza, Trump said he is focused connected getting group location food. As for a subject occupation, he said: “I really can’t say. That’s going to beryllium beautiful overmuch up to Israel.”

Displaced Palestinians stitchery to person aid.

White House spokeswoman Anna Kelly told NBC News: “We do not remark connected nan President’s backstage conversations. President Trump is focused connected returning each nan hostages and getting nan group successful Gaza fed.”

A caller Gaza ceasefire has proven elusive. Israel does not judge Hamas is motivated to discuss nan merchandise of nan remaining hostages, nan root briefed connected Israeli discussions and nan Western charismatic said, and it believes a subject violative is nan likeliest option.

The world organization has precocious been heaping unit connected Israel, pinch nan United Kingdom, France, Canada and others saying they whitethorn move to admit a Palestinian authorities astatine nan U.N. General Assembly successful September.

“It seems for illustration we are astatine a ceramic wall, pinch countries saying they are recognizing Palestine,” said nan personification briefed connected Israeli discussions. “Now each ideas are being exhausted.”

The Western charismatic said an violative remains a very vulnerable imaginable for nan Israeli subject because Hamas is very dug successful and location is “no chance they tin termination each fighter.”

The Western charismatic added that location is interest that Hamas will termination hostages aliases put them successful nan measurement of fighting if it is threatened.

Israeli forces cognize nan wide area wherever each nan hostages are, said nan personification briefed connected Israeli discussions and nan Western official, 1 of whom added that nan belief is that area is successful cardinal Gaza.

“Looking astatine nan information of hostages, it’s clear that they don’t person overmuch much time,” 1 of nan sources added successful reference to a recent video of an emaciated Israeli hostage wrong a cramped Gaza passageway digging his ain grave.