By South China Morning Post | Created at 2025-04-03 04:51:44 | Updated at 2025-04-05 03:50:53
1 day ago
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Wednesday that the military was “dissecting” the Gaza Strip and seizing territory to pressure Hamas into freeing hostages still held in the enclave.
It came as rescuers said 34 people were killed in continued Israeli strikes on the territory, including on a UN building.
The military is “dissecting the (Gaza) Strip and increasing the pressure step by step so that (Hamas) will return our hostages”, Netanyahu said in a statement, adding that Israel “is seizing territory, striking terrorists, and destroying infrastructure”.
He added that the army was “taking control of the Morag Axis”, a strip of land that was expected to run between the southern governorates of Khan Younis and Rafah.
The name of the axis refers to a former Israeli settlement that was evacuated when Israel unilaterally pulled out of Gaza in 2005.
