by Emmitt Barry, Worthy News Correspondent
(Worthy News) – Israel escalated its military campaign in Gaza on Sunday, targeting Rafah and ordering civilians to evacuate Tel Sultan. This marks the first reoccupation of a major area in Gaza since fighting resumed on March 18, as well as announcing a key Hamas terrorist was eliminated on a targeted airstrike.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said it killed Ismail Barhoum, a senior Hamas political bureau member and head of its finances, in a strike on Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis. Hamas confirmed his death, stating he was receiving treatment at the hospital after being injured in a previous strike.
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz praised Barhoum’s killing, calling him “the new Hamas prime minister in Gaza, who replaced Issam Da’alis, the previous prime minister who was eliminated a few days ago.”
The IDF said the strike followed “an extensive intelligence-gathering process” and used a “precision munition” to limit civilian harm. Footage showed the hospital largely intact, with fire visible in one stairwell section.
After Barhoum’s killing, Katz said the offensive was “expanding,” and vowed Israel would keep striking until all 59 hostages held in Gaza are freed.
The IDF said Sunday that thousands of troops are set to join the renewed ground offensive in Gaza, significantly expanding what had so far been a limited operation against Hamas.
IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir told Israel Channel 12 that the IDF is pushing to expand the offensive, telling political officials, “Hamas is stalling for time, it’s a strategy, not a tactic.” He added, “The IDF’s operation hurts [Hamas] and causes some movement, but it doesn’t lead it to release the hostages. Therefore, there is no choice, the pressure must be increased.”
The IDF began reoccupying a second major area within one of Gaza’s four main sectors. Previously, it had only entered one area per sector—north, central, Khan Younis, and Rafah—applying pressure on Hamas.
On Saturday night, Israel’s security cabinet approved Katz’s proposal to create a Defense Ministry office to facilitate the “voluntary” departure of Palestinians from Gaza.
Since early March, 1,000 Gazans have left the enclave, with another 600 expected to depart this week.
Currently, only Gazans needing medical care, those with dual citizenship, and residents with destination visas are permitted to leave the Strip.
Copyright 1999-2026 Worthy News. This article was originally published on Worthy News and was reproduced with permission.
Latest News from Worthy News
Scores of people have been killed after a powerful 7.7-magnitude earthquake struck Indonesia’s Flores Island early Saturday, authorities said, as rescuers struggled to reach some of the hardest-hit areas, while a less powerful tremor was reported in North Sumatra province.
Five people were injured, one critically, in a shooting involving multiple gunmen at Virginia State University early Saturday, authorities said, a day after six people, including a suspected shooter, died in separate shootings in Michigan.
Romania and neighboring Hungary are facing an energy crisis linked to a record heat wave and the related low level of the Danube River, with Romania forced to shut down its last operating nuclear reactor while Hungary struggles to keep the only one of its four Paks reactors still operating online.
An elderly Christian leader has been detained in India for allegedly offending the religious sentiments of the Asian nation’s Hindu majority on social media.
Members of Pakistan’s Christian minority were reeling Friday after numerous violent incidents over faith and what they say were false allegations of blasphemy against Islam, the majority religion in the Asian nation.
The number of Americans filing for unemployment benefits remained relatively low in early August, offering another sign that widespread layoffs have yet to take hold even as hiring across the U.S. economy remains subdued.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) carried out a second preemptive airstrike in Gaza in two days Thursday, targeting a Hamas terror cell in Khan Yunis that Israeli military officials said was preparing an attack against Israeli forces.