Cabinet backs plan to expand Gaza operation

Israel's security cabinet approved plans for an expanded operation in the Gaza Strip, Israeli media reported on Friday, adding to signs that attempts to stop the fighting and return hostages held by Hamas have made no progress.

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The decision came after comments from both Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the head of the military, Lieutenant General Eyal Zamir this week indicating that Israel intended to step up the campaign in Gaza.

Since the collapse of an earlier ceasefire agreement in March, Israeli troops have been carving out wide buffer zones in Gaza, squeezing the 2.3 million population into an ever-narrower zone in the centre of the enclave and along the coast and shutting off the entry of aid trucks.