Fighting in southern Gaza as Israel claims it is pulling troops from other areas

Heavy fighting was reported in the southern Gaza city of Khan Younis on Tuesday a day after Israel said it was withdrawing thousands of troops from other areas in a potential shift away from the massive air and ground operations that have devastated the Hamasruled enclaveIsraeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed to press ahead with the war until Hamas is crushed and the more than 100 hostages still held by the militant group in Gaza are freed saying it could take several more monthsBut ahead of a visit to the region by US Secretary of State Antony Blinken Israel is under growing international pressure to scale back the offensive that has killed nearly 22000 Palestinians Blinken has urged Israel to do more to protect Palestinian civiliansWord of the troop drawdown came as Israels Supreme Court struck down a key component of Netanyahus contentious judicial overhaul plan which had deeply divided Israelis and threatened the militarys readiness before the Oct 7 Hamas attack that triggered the warThe ruling appeared to have dealt a fatal blow to the judicial plan Netanyahu and his allies seem unlikely to revive the divisive initiative during wartime Elections are widely expected once the fighting winds down and widespread anger in Israel over intelligence and security failures linked to the Hamas attack could translate into a poor showing for those in power nowAlso read Turkiye arrests 33 suspects accused of working for Israels MossadThe court ruling could meanwhile help Israel fend off allegations of genocide in Gaza made by South Africa at the International Court of Justice The ICJ and other international tribunals consider whether countries have their own independent judiciaries in deciding on whether to interveneTroops rotate out but fighting continuesThe army said Monday that five brigades or several thousand troops would be taken out of Gaza in the coming weeks Some will head to bases for further training or rest while many older reservists will go home The war has taken a toll on the economy by preventing reservists from going to their jobs running their businesses or returning to university studiesThe military has not said publicly whether the withdrawal reflects a new phase of the war But the move is in line with the plans that Israeli leaders have outlined for a lowintensity campaign that focuses on remaining Hamas strongholds and could last for much of the yearIsrael has said its close to operational control over most of northern Gaza reducing the need for forces there Yet fierce fighting has continued in other areas of the Palestinian territory especially the south where many of Hamas forces remain intact and where most of Gazas 23 million people have fledMeanwhile Defense Minister Yoav Gallant announced late Monday that residents from seven Israeli communities close to Gaza can return to their homes soon one of the most concrete signs that the army feels confident it has minimized the threat of rocket launches from parts of Gaza The communities are located 4 to 7 kilometers 25 to 45 miles from the borderPalestinians reported heavy airstrikes and artillery shelling overnight and into Tuesday in the southern city of Khan Younis and farming areas to the east near the border with Israel Fighting was also underway in and around the builtup Bureij refugee camp in central GazaEven in Gaza City which has been largely depopulated and where Israeli ground troops have been battling militants for over two months residents said there were clashes in different neighborhoods as well as in the nearby urban Jabaliya refugee campThe war was sparked by the militant groups Oct 7 attack on southern Israel in which 1200 people were killed and 240 others were taken hostageIsrael responded with an air ground and sea offensive that has killed more than 21900 people in Gaza twothirds of them women and children according to the Health Ministry in the Hamasruled territory The count does not differentiate between civilians and combatants in its count The Israeli military says 173 soldiers have died since it launched its ground operationIsrael says without providing evidence that more than 8000 militants have been killed It blames Hamas for the high civilian death toll saying the militants embed within residential areas including schools and hospitalsThe war has displaced some 8537 of Gazas population forcing hundreds of thousands of people into overcrowded shelters or teeming tent camps in Israelidesignated safe areas that the military has nevertheless bombed Palestinians are left with a sense that nowhere is safeRuling could help Israel fend off genocide chargesThe widespread death and destruction unprecedented in the centuryold Mideast conflict led South Africa to file a case against Israel at the ICJ accusing it of genocidal acts that aim to destroy Palestinians in Gaza Israel rejected the accusations calling them a blood libelSouth Africa asked The Haguebased court last week to issue an interim order for Israel to immediately suspend its military operations in Gaza The case if it goes ahead will take years but an interim order could be issued within weeksIts unclear what concrete effects an ICJ ruling against Israel would have but it would likely isolate the country politically and economically Israel cant afford to ignore this said Barak Medina a law professor at the Hebrew University of JerusalemHe said the Supreme Court ruling against the judicial overhaul could strengthen Israels case by showing it has an active and independent court that can hold the government accountableThe judicial overhaul itself meanwhile appears to have been defeatedMedina said the Supreme Courts decision to strike down a key plank of the proposed changes makes it unlikely courts would allow the othersNetanyahus coalition could propose a watereddown version but it would have to be passed by parliament a process that would reopen deep divisions within Israeli society and generate even more anger at the prime minister already blamed by many for the failure to prevent the Oct 7 attackThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever