Israel's Netanyahu says he told Blinken we will go into Rafah alone if needed

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Friday that Israel remained determined to send troops into the southern Gaza city of Rafah, where more than 1 million Palestinians are sheltering, and would do so without U.S. backing if necessary.

Netanyahu said in a statement he had told visiting U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken that there was no way to defeat the Islamist movement Hamas without going into Rafah. "And I told him that I hope we will do it with the support of the U.S., but if we have to - we will do it alone," he said.