Israeli leaders approve military push into Rafah hours after Hamas agrees to ceasefire

Israeli leaders have approved a military operation into the Gaza Strip city of Rafah, and Israeli forces are striking targets in the area, officials have announced.

The move came hours after Hamas announced it had accepted an Egyptian-Qatari ceasefire proposal.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said the proposal was “far from Israel’s essential demands”, but it would send negotiators to continue talks on an agreement.

Jack Peat

Jack is a business and economics journalist and the founder of The London Economic (TLE). He has contributed articles to VICE, Huffington Post and Independent and is a published author. Jack read History at the University of Wales, Bangor and has a Masters in Journalism from the University of Newcastle-upon-Tyne.