Israel to withdraw thousands of troops from Gaza Strip

Israel says it will begin pulling thousands of troops out of Gaza this week, indicating a shift to more targeted operations against Hamas.

An Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) official said toppling the Islamist faction remained an objective of the offensive in the Palestinian enclave, and that some of the five brigades withdrawn will prepare for a possible flare-up of a second front against Hezbollah in Lebanon.

The US welcomed the troop pullback, calling it the start of a shift to lower-intensity operations in the north of the Palestinian enclave.

“This appears to be the start of the gradual shift to lower-intensity operations in the north that we have been encouraging,” a White House official said, noting that the change reflected the success of the Israeli military in dismantling Hamas’ military capabilities there.

US secretary of state Antony Blinken, who has repeatedly urged Israel to do more to protect Palestinian civilians, is expected in the region next week.

It came as foreign secretary Lord Cameron spoke to Blinken on Tuesday about attacks on ships in the Red Sea.

“The foreign secretary and secretary of state discussed the international communit’s shared condemnation of the illegal and unjustified attacks on commercial shipping in the Red Sea by Houthi militants. They made clear that the UK and US will work with our partners to hold the Houthis accountable for these unlawful seizures and attacks,” a statement said.

Meanwhile, 87 tonnes of aid sent by Britain and Cyprus has arrived in Egypt and is ready for transfer into Gaza. The delivery to Port Said comes as both nations try to establish a regular corridor for humanitarian deliveries.

The Israeli army’s chief spokesperson, Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari, did not say whether the withdrawal of some troops reflected a new phase of the war.

“The objectives of the war require prolonged fighting, and we are preparing accordingly,” he told reporters late on Sunday. But the move is in line with the plans that Israeli leaders have outlined for a low-intensity campaign, expected to last for much of the year, that focuses on remaining Hamas strongholds and “pockets of resistance”.

Even as Israel pulled tanks out of some cities in Gaza, fighting still raged elsewhere in the Palestinian enclave amid intense bombardment, said residents, with IDF aircraft and tanks stepping up strikes in southern Gaza overnight, including eastern and northern areas of Khan Younis.

The US has kept up its support for Israel while expressing concern over the growing casualty toll and humanitarian crisis in Gaza. Mr Biden earlier spoke with Mr Netanyahu about Israel’s objectives and the phasing of its military operations in Gaza on 23 December, while underscoring the need to protect civilians and secure the release of hostages being held by the Hamas Islamist militant group, the White House said.

Israel says the war in Gaza, which has reduced much of the territory to rubble, killing thousands and plunging its 2.3 million people into a humanitarian disaster, has many months to go.

The Gaza war was triggered by a surprise Hamas attack on Israeli towns on 7 October that Israel says killed 1,200 people. Palestinian health authorities in Hamas-run Gaza say Israel’s offensive there has killed more than 21,978 people and wounded many thousands more.

Additional reporting by agencies