THOUSANDS of Israeli soldiers are being shifted out of the Gaza Strip,themilitary saidon Monday, in the first significant drawdown of troops since the warbeganas forces continued to bear down on the main city in the southern half of the enclave. The troop movement could signal that fighting is being scaled back in some areas of Gaza,particularlyinthenorthern halfwhere themilitary has saiditisclosetoassumingoperationalcontrol.Israelhasbeen under pressure from its chief ally, the United States, to begin to switch to lower-intensity fighting. Word of the drawdown came ahead of a visit by Secretary of State Antony Blinken to the region and after the Biden administration bypassed Congress for the second time this month to approve an emergency weapons sale to Israel. But fierce fighting continued in other areas of Gaza, especially the southern city Khan Younis andcentral areas ofthe territory. Israel has pledged to charge ahead until its war aims have been achieved,including dismantling Hamas,whichhas ruled Gaza for 16 years. The military said in a statement Monday that five brigades, or several thousand troops, were being taken out of Gaza in the coming weeks for training and rest. In a briefing on Sunday that first announced the troop with drawal without specifying how many force swere leaving, Army spokesman Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari did not say whether the decision meant Israel was launching a new phase of the war.

 

“The objectives of the war require prolonged fighting,and weare preparingaccordingly,” he said. Israel has vowed to crush Hamas’ military and governing capabilities in its war,whichwas sparked by the militant group’s October 7 attack on southern Israel, which killed 1,200 people. Roughly 240 people were taken hostage. Israel responded with a blisteringair,ground and sea offensive that has killed more than 21,800 people in Gaza, two thirds of them women and children, according to the Health Ministry in Gaza, which does not differentiate between civilians and combatants in its count. Israel says more than 8,000 militants have been killed, without providing evidence.

 

It blames Hamas for the high civilian death toll, saying the militants embed within residential areas,includingschools and hospitals. Thewarhas displaced some 85 per cent of Gaza’s 2.3 million residents, sending swells of people seeking shelter in Israeli-designated safe areas that the military has nevertheless bombed. Palestinians are left with a sense that nowhere is safe in the tiny enclave. In Khan Younis,whereIsraelisbelieved to have thousands of troops, residents reported airstrikes and shelling in the west and center of the city. The military andthemilitant groupIslamic Jihad reported clashes in the area. ThePalestinianRedCrescent said on X, that it transported several dead and injured following a strike late Sunday in Beach Street in Khan Younis. It posted nighttime footage showing medics carrying casualties to ambulances. Combat was also reported inurban refugee camps incentral Gaza,where Israel expanded its offensive last week.