Reuters
The Israeli military said on Sunday it had begun "extensive ground operations" in northern and southern Gaza, stepping up its campaign in the enclave, where Palestinian health officials said Israeli strikes killed at least 130 people overnight.
Israel made its announcement after sources on both sides said there had been no progress in a new round of indirect talks between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas in Qatar.
The office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the talks included discussions on a truce and hostage deal as well as a proposal to end the war in return for the exile of Hamas militants and the demilitarisation of the enclave - terms Hamas has previously rejected.
The statement was in line with previous declarations from Israel, but the timing, as negotiators meet, offered some prospect of flexibility in Israel's position. A senior Israeli official said there had been no progress in the talks so far.
The Israeli military suggested in a later statement that it could still scale down operations to help reach a deal in Doha. Military chief Eyal Zamir told troops in Gaza that the army would provide the country's leaders with the flexibility they needed to reach a hostage deal, according to the statement.
Israel's military said it had conducted a preliminary wave of strikes on more than 670 Hamas targets in Gaza over the past week to support "Gideon's Chariots", its new ground operation aimed at achieving "operational control" in parts of the enclave. It said it killed dozens of Hamas fighters.
Gaza's Health Ministry said in the week to Sunday alone, at least 464 Palestinians were killed. The deaths of 130 or so Palestinians overnight are in addition to that figure.
"Complete families were wiped off the civil registration record by (overnight) Israeli bombardment," Khalil Al-Deqran, Gaza health ministry spokesperson, told Reuters by phone.
The Israeli campaign has devastated Gaza, pushing nearly all its 2.3 million residents from their homes and killing more than 53,000 people, according to Gaza health authorities.
Israel has blocked the entry of medical, food and fuel supplies into Gaza since the start of March to try to pressure Hamas into freeing its hostages and has approved plans that could involve seizing the entire Gaza Strip and controlling aid.
International experts have warned of looming famine.
Israel made its announcement after sources on both sides said there had been no progress in a new round of indirect talks between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas in Qatar.
The office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the talks included discussions on a truce and hostage deal as well as a proposal to end the war in return for the exile of Hamas militants and the demilitarisation of the enclave - terms Hamas has previously rejected.
The statement was in line with previous declarations from Israel, but the timing, as negotiators meet, offered some prospect of flexibility in Israel's position. A senior Israeli official said there had been no progress in the talks so far.
The Israeli military suggested in a later statement that it could still scale down operations to help reach a deal in Doha. Military chief Eyal Zamir told troops in Gaza that the army would provide the country's leaders with the flexibility they needed to reach a hostage deal, according to the statement.
Israel's military said it had conducted a preliminary wave of strikes on more than 670 Hamas targets in Gaza over the past week to support "Gideon's Chariots", its new ground operation aimed at achieving "operational control" in parts of the enclave. It said it killed dozens of Hamas fighters.
Gaza's Health Ministry said in the week to Sunday alone, at least 464 Palestinians were killed. The deaths of 130 or so Palestinians overnight are in addition to that figure.
"Complete families were wiped off the civil registration record by (overnight) Israeli bombardment," Khalil Al-Deqran, Gaza health ministry spokesperson, told Reuters by phone.
The Israeli campaign has devastated Gaza, pushing nearly all its 2.3 million residents from their homes and killing more than 53,000 people, according to Gaza health authorities.
Israel has blocked the entry of medical, food and fuel supplies into Gaza since the start of March to try to pressure Hamas into freeing its hostages and has approved plans that could involve seizing the entire Gaza Strip and controlling aid.
International experts have warned of looming famine.
