Israeli army calls up tens of thousands of reservists to expand Gaza offensive

Jerusalem, May 5 (IANS) Israel's military has begun issuing "tens of thousands" of call-up orders for reservists to intensify its offensive in the Gaza Strip, a senior defence official said, vowing to increase pressure on Hamas to free hostages.

Eyal Zamir, Chief of the General Staff of the Israel Defense Forces, announced the move during a visit to a naval commando base on Sunday, Xinhua news agency reported.

"This week we are issuing tens of thousands of call-up orders to our reservists to intensify and expand our operations in Gaza," Zamir said. "We are increasing pressure in order to bring our hostages home and to defeat Hamas."

He added that as part of the expanded offensive, the military would operate "in additional areas" in the enclave and destroy "all militant infrastructure."

Zamir stated the reservists would also be deployed to other areas, including the northern border near Lebanon and Syria, and the occupied West Bank.

The announcement followed a weekend where Israeli forces struck more than 100 sites across the Gaza Strip, targeting militant cells, underground infrastructure, and military compounds, the army said in a statement.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his coalition partners have vowed to continue the war until Hamas is defeated, despite mounting public pressure in Israel for a ceasefire agreement that could secure the release of 59 hostages Israel says are still held in Gaza.

Israel ended a two-month ceasefire with Hamas in March and resumed its air and ground operations. According to the health authorities in Gaza, more than 52,000 Palestinians have been killed since the Israeli offensive began in October 2023.

--IANS

int/rs