Israel announces withdrawal of thousands of troops from Gaza, but warns of ‘protracted’ fighting that will continue ‘through 2024’

Thousands of Israeli troops are being withdrawn from Gaza, despite military warnings that “protracted” fighting will continue into 2024.

In what is the biggest withdrawal of forces since the war broke out 87 days ago, the troop movement could signal a scaling back of fighting in some parts of the embattled enclave.

The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) have said they are about to take operational control in the north of the Gaza Strip, where brutal aerial bombardment has been ongoing since Israel declared war on Hamas following the October 7 invasion.

Israel is under pressure from its key ally, the United States, to switch to lower-intensity fighting amid high civilian casualties in Gaza, where Hamas authorities say the death toll stands at more than 21,000.

However, military leaders have vowed to continue until Israel’s war goal of dismantling Hamas is achieved, with bitter fighting in the enclave continuing and casualties continuing to rise on the first day of the new year.

IDF spokesman Daniel Hagari said in a New Year’s message that Israeli forces are preparing for continued fighting in 2024.

“The IDF must plan ahead knowing that additional missions will take place and that fighting will continue for the rest of the year,” he said, according to the BBC.

Word of the pushback came ahead of a visit by Secretary of State Antony Blinken to the region and after the Biden administration bypassed Congress for the second time this month to approve an emergency arms sale to Israel.

But heavy fighting continued in other parts of Gaza, especially in the southern town of Khan Younis and central parts of the area.

Attacks on Israel have also continued, with Hamas firing a barrage of rockets across the border just as the clock struck midnight and two dozen people killed overnight in Israeli attacks on Palestinian territory.

Air warning sirens sounded across Israel as 2024 began, and journalists in Tel Aviv witnessed missile defense systems intercepting rockets overhead, with some revelers taking cover in the streets below, while others held up the party with a shrug.

“We were all scared on the corners … my heart was pounding,” said Gabriel Zemelman, 26, outside a bar after the rocket fire. ‘It’s terrifying. You just saw the life we ​​live, it’s crazy.”

The Ezzedine al-Qassam Brigades, Hamas’s armed wing, claimed responsibility for the attack in a video published on social media, saying they fired M90 rockets in “response to Israel’s mass killings of civilians.”

The Israeli military confirmed the attack, without initially reporting casualties or damage.

Surrounded by partygoers, server Ran Stahl, 24, said he didn’t have the heart to celebrate, not since one of his friends was killed in Hamas’s attack on the Supernova music festival.

‘As soon as I start dancing, I feel guilty; the sadness and mourning are coming back,” he said.

In Gaza, at least 24 people were killed overnight in Israeli strikes, according to the Hamas-run Health Ministry, with attacks reported across the territory.

The nearly three-month war in Gaza was sparked by Hamas’ bloody Oct. 7 attacks on Israel, which killed about 1,140 people, most of whom were civilians, according to official figures.

Fighters also took about 250 people hostage that day, most of whom Israeli officials say still remain in Gaza.

In response, Israel vowed to destroy Hamas and launched a punitive offensive in the Gaza Strip, which has reduced large areas to a devastated wasteland and killed at least 21,822 people, mostly women and children, according to the territory’s health ministry.

The Israeli army says 172 of its soldiers have been killed in Gaza, with the war showing no signs of ending.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned on Saturday that the fighting would continue “for many months until Hamas is eliminated and the hostages are returned.”

In the besieged Gaza Strip, where the UN says 85 percent of the population has been displaced, 20-year-old Hamdan Abu Arab said he hoped “2024 will be better.”

‘A while ago I was talking with my friends, and we remembered how…we went out and enjoyed our time on the last day of the year. But this New Year’s Eve there are only rockets and the remains of people,” he said.

Since Israel imposed a siege at the start of the war, Gazans have faced severe shortages of food, fuel, water and medicine.

UN chief Antonio Guterres has condemned the “epic human suffering” and “collective punishment” of Palestinian civilians, while the WHO has warned of the risk of infectious diseases.

“We are exhausted… We have been displaced five times during this war,” said 29-year-old Bassam Hana. We hope that things improve in 2024 and that we live like any other human being. Right now we’re living like animals.’

At least 48 Palestinians were killed in attacks on Gaza City this weekend, the territory’s health ministry said, and many remain buried under rubble.

“After the explosion, we arrived at the site of the strike and saw martyrs everywhere,” said a resident after a building was hit.

“There are still children missing, we can’t find them.”

In his overnight briefing on Sunday, Israeli army spokesman Daniel Hagari said several militants were killed and subdued earlier in the day “during the battles in Khan Yunis.”

“We continue to deal with the underground tunnels and attack the rocket launch facilities to reduce rocket fire on the State of Israel.

“There are dozens of planes in the skies of Gaza at any given time,” he said.

International mediators have continued their efforts to broker a new pause in the fighting.

A Hamas delegation from Qatar visited Cairo on Friday to discuss an Egyptian three-phase plan that proposes renewable ceasefires, a staggered release of hostages for Palestinian prisoners and an eventual end to the war, sources close to Hamas said.

Their Islamic Jihad allies said on Saturday that Palestinian factions were “in the process of evaluating” the proposal and would provide a response “within days.”

The war in Gaza has raised fears of a wider regional conflict, with hostilities flaring with mainly Iranian-backed militant groups in nearby countries who say they are acting in support of Hamas.

The Israeli army announced on Sunday evening that it had intercepted two ‘enemy aircraft’ launched from Syria towards northern Israel. It had previously reported launches towards Israeli territory from Lebanon.

“During the day, IDF (military) tanks and helicopters targeted three terrorist squadrons operating in Lebanon,” the army said in a statement.

And in the Red Sea, the US military said on Sunday that navy helicopters fired on Iranian-backed Huthi rebel boats off the coast of Yemen that attacked a cargo ship, with Yemeni sources reporting that 10 rebels had been killed.