Israel is reportedly planning to include the southern Gazan city of Rafah within a buffer zone it is constructing along the Gaza-Israel border, the Israeli newspaper Haaretz reported today, citing anonymous sources. The Israeli military has not confirmed the report.
The buffer zone would span approximately 29 square miles, covering about 20% of the Gaza Strip—from the Philadelphi Corridor near the Egyptian border to the newly established Morag Corridor in central Gaza. Before Israel’s military campaign began in October 2023, the area housed around 200,000 Palestinians. Now, the region is “almost entirely deserted” due to extensive destruction caused by Israeli forces, Haaretz reported.
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The Israeli military is currently widening the Morag Corridor between Rafah and Khan Younis by demolishing buildings along the corridor.
The inclusion of Rafah in the buffer zone would significantly expand Israeli control over Gaza and mirror tactics used in the north of the enclave, the paper said, noting that the move appears to be part of Israel’s broader strategy to increase pressure on Hamas.
Since Israel resumed its offensive on March 18, nearly 1,500 people have been killed and 3,700 wounded in Gaza, according to the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry. The new offensive shattered a ceasefire and hostage release deal reached in January.
Last week, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed to intensify military operations. “We are now dividing the strip and increasing the pressure step by step, so that they will give us our hostages. And as long as they do not give them to us, the pressure will increase until they do,” he said.