ISRAEL TANKS MOVE INTO GAZA ON A "TARGETED RAID"

 The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) carries out a "targeted raid" overnight in northern Gaza using tanks

Israel has not launched its expected ground invasion of Gaza - but says the raid was in "preparation for the next stages of combat"

As Israeli says its air strikes hit 250 Hamas targets in the past 24 hours, the UN's humanitarian coordinator says "nowhere is safe in Gaza".

The UN's agency for Palestinians says it found more fuel on Wednesday - but warns supplies are running low across Gaza

The Hamas-run health ministry in Gaza says almost 6,500 people have been killed since 7 October

More than 1,400 were killed in the initial attacks on Israel by Hamas, and more than 200 people are still being held hostage in Gaza.

Israel repeats Hamas roadblock accusations

Israel has repeated its accusation that Hamas are using roadblocks to prevent Gazans leaving the north of the strip.

The Israeli military has published audio, which it says is a conversation between one of its officers and a Gazan man.

"How did they block the road?" the officer asks.

"They are shooting at people," the Gazan replies, according to the IDF's transcript.

On 13 October, Israel ordered all Palestinians living in northern Gaza - at the time more than a million people - to head south via two safe routes.

The IDF previously published aerial images it says showing roadblocks on one of the two evacuation roads.

Israelis want Hamas removed - but how?

Jeremy Bowen

International editor, reporting from southern Israel

Israelis are still absolutely knocked sideways and thoroughly traumatised by the killings that took place on 7 October.

They are pretty much as close to unanimity as possible on the principle of removing Hamas as an enemy.

A very different question is how and when that is achieved.

I think there is a growing chorus of voices arguing that, with four hostages already released, with the Qataris on board as negotiators, and with talk of a tranche of maybe 50 people more being set free, there is a reason to hang on – that Israel doesn’t have to do this in a hurry.

As for Netanyahu himself, leading a country at war is an inherently highly stressful activity. There is extra stress for him in that he was presiding over a deeply fractured and bitterly divided country before any of this started.

So while Israelis have united behind their flag and an agreement that they must get rid of Hamas, they have not rallied behind Benjamin Netanyahu.

Yes - he has some devoted followers. But there are some very vociferous voices who think that he is a major part of the problem - that he split the country in pursuit of ideological goals over territory in the West Bank, and to preserve his own place in power.

He’s also been on trial for very serious corruption charges that might even land him in jail. So his enemies would say that everything for Netanyahu is a gigantic act of political self-preservation - and everything about the run up to the invasion is about him as much as Israel.

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