After the Israeli army announced last Monday that it was intensifying operations in the city of Khan Younis in southern Gaza, it ordered the evacuation of a wide area covering about 20% of the city, which is the largest city in the south of the strip. While Israeli forces intensified their attacks in Khan Younis, where they believe Hamas leaders are hiding in underground tunnels, some former Israeli officials warned of the possibility of their escape towards Egypt.
Jacob Nagel, a former Israeli national security advisor, stated that if they are cornered in Khan Younis, they can move to Rafah. He added, "If they go there, it means they are planning to flee to Egypt," according to the Wall Street Journal. He noted that a significant portion of those tunnels towards Egyptian territory was destroyed in 2015, but he believed that "the mission is not over yet." He also indicated that Tel Aviv believes Hamas "was able to use those tunnels to bring large quantities of weapons into the Gaza Strip before the attacks on October 7."
**Rewards for Information**
Israel has offered a reward of $400,000 for the capture of Hamas leader in Gaza, Yehya Sinwar, according to leaflets dropped by the Israeli Air Force over Gaza last week. The same leaflets offered rewards for three other Hamas leaders, including Mohammed Deif, the head of the movement’s military wing.
It is worth mentioning that Israeli forces announced that they had launched their military campaign, which has been ongoing for more than 10 weeks, against the Gaza Strip with the aim of "eliminating Hamas," following the surprise attack by the movement's fighters on Israeli settlements and military bases near Gaza. However, their airstrikes and continuous bombardments across the strip have resulted in the deaths of at least 20,000 people, including 8,000 children and 6,200 women, according to the Gaza government media office.
Meanwhile, many international relief groups have warned that the 2.3 million residents of the strip are on the verge of disaster due to the widespread destruction, which has forced 90% of them to leave their homes, while many others suffer from malnutrition and severe shortages of clean water and medical care. At the same time, Egypt, which borders the Gaza Strip, has warned against attempts to displace Palestinians from their land and push them towards Sinai.
