Israeli troops deploy to corridor in Gaza Strip’s south
Israel says its troops have deployed to a newly established security corridor across the southern Gaza Strip to pressure the Hamas militant group.
Israeli soldiers patrol the Netzarim Corridor in Gaza. The corridor divides the Strip, preventing terrorists from crossing between Gaza’s northern and southern areas. Photo by TPS-IL
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday announced the new Morag Corridor and suggested it would cut off the southern city of Rafah, which Israel has ordered evacuated, from the rest of the Gaza Strip.
A military statement on Saturday said troops with the 36th Division had been deployed in the corridor.
It was not immediately clear how many had deployed or where exactly the corridor was located.
Morag is the name of a Jewish settlement that once stood between Rafah and Khan Younis, and Netanyahu suggested it would run between the cities.
Maps published by Israeli media showed the new corridor running the width of the narrow coastal strip from east to west.
Netanyahu said it would be “a second Philadelphi corridor,” referring to the Gaza Strip side of the border with Egypt further south, which has been under Israeli control since last May.
Israel has also reasserted control over the Netzarim corridor that cuts off the northern third of the enclave, including Gaza City, from the rest of the strip.
The Philadelphi and Netzarim corridors run from the Israeli border to the Mediterranean Sea.
“We are cutting up the strip, and we are increasing the pressure step by step, so that they will give us our hostages,” Netanyahu said on Wednesday.
The latest announcement came shortly after a White House official confirmed that Netanyahu on Monday would again meet with US President Donald Trump, their second meeting at the White House since Trump took office in January.
Last month, Israel shattered the ceasefire in the Gaza Strip with a surprise bombardment after trying to pressure Hamas to accept proposed new terms for the truce that had taken hold in January.
The White House supported Israel’s move.
Netanyahu’s defence minister said Israel would seize large areas of the Gaza Strip and add them to its so-called security zones.
Israel has pledged to escalate the war with Hamas until the militant group returns the remaining hostages taken in the October 7, 2023, Hamas-led attack that sparked the war, disarms and leaves the territory.
Israel last month again halted all supplies of food, fuel and humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip.
Associated Press
