Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel’s military is “switching gears” in Gaza, dividing and seizing more parts of the strip, a move experts say could mean Israel establishing deeper, more long-term control over the territory.

Hundreds of thousands of fleeing Gazans sought shelter on Thursday in one of the biggest mass displacements of the war, as Israeli forces advanced into the ruins of the city of Rafah, part of a newly announced "security zone" they intend to seize.

In pressing forward with its assault on the territory, Israel hopes to squeeze Hamas into releasing the remaining hostages. But other objectives have emerged.

Since early March, several pro-Palestinian activists at colleges across the country have been detained by ICE agents as part of a Trump administration-led effort to crack down on what it calls "Hamas sympathizers.

The Israeli military is conducting an investigation into an incident in Gaza in which a number of emergency and aid workers were killed, a military spokesperson said on Thursday, rejecting a description of the incident as an "execution".

As the director of the Palestinian Center for Policy and Survey Research, I have studied public opinion in Gaza for decades and to be sure, Hamas has never in its entire history had a majority support in Gaza.

Palestinians hold signs at a protest against the war and Hamas in Deir al-Balah, Gaza Strip, Wednesday, March 26, 2025, in a rare show of public anger against the militant group that rules the territory. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana, File)

A new exhibition opening in Paris on Friday showcases archaeological artifacts from Gaza, once a major commercial crossroads between Asia and Africa, whose heritage has been ravaged by Israel's ongoing onslaught.

Hamas decided not to respond or engage with Israel's counter-proposal for a ceasefire in Gaza, an official told Reuters on Wednesday, affirming it is committed to the mediators' plan instead.