Israel's defence minister vows to 'deepen' Rafah offensive if talks on hostage deal fail

Israels defence minister has vowed to deepen the military offensive in Rafah if a deal to bring home Israeli hostages held by Hamas does not make progress.Israel sent troops into Rafah late Monday and seized the citys strategic border crossing with Egypt after rebuffing a cease-fire proposal approved by Hamas. This will happen all over the strip in the south, in the centre and in the north.

Israel's defence minister has vowed to “deepen” the military offensive in Rafah if a deal to bring home Israeli hostages held by Hamas does not make progress.

Israel sent troops into Rafah late Monday and seized the city's strategic border crossing with Egypt after rebuffing a cease-fire proposal approved by Hamas. Israel said the proposal did not address its “core” demands but agreed to continue negotiations.

Defence Minister Yoav Gallant visited troops in the Rafah area on Tuesday and said the operation would continue until Israel “eliminates” Hamas in Rafah and the rest of Gaza.

But he said Israel is willing to make “compromises” to bring home hostages. “If that option is removed, we will go on and “deepen” the operation,” he said. “This will happen all over the strip — in the south, in the centre and in the north.”