GAZA/JERUSALEM/RAMALLAH – The Israeli army carried out on Monday airstrikes on areas in eastern Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip, while Hamas said it was considering suspending negotiations with Israel following its decision to evacuate the eastern areas of Rafah, according to Palestinian security sources and eyewitnesses.

The Israeli airstrikes created fire belts in the vicinity of Gaza Airport and on the outskirts of the Al-Salam neighborhood, east of Rafah, said the sources.

The raids caused large explosions and inflicted significant damage on nearby structures, with no injuries reported yet.

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An official Hamas source told Xinhua that the group is considering suspending negotiations with Israel in response to Israeli decision to evacuate parts of Rafah.

Before the attacks started, the Israeli army had called on the Palestinian civilian population to temporarily evacuate from eastern Rafah.

Avichai Adraee, a spokesperson of the Israeli army, said in a press statement that "for all people who live in the neighborhoods of Al-Salam, Al-Jeneina, Tabba Zaraa, and Al-Byouk in the Rafah area in blocks 10-16, 28, and 270, the army will work with extreme force against terrorist organizations there”.

The army is expanding the humanitarian area in Al-Mawasi, which includes field hospitals, tents, food, water, medicines, and other supplies, said Adraee.

The army, cooperating with international organizations and other countries, also allowed the expansion of humanitarian aid that is brought into the Strip, he added.

Israel considers Rafah the last major stronghold of Hamas in the Gaza Strip. Located in the southernmost part of the Strip, Rafah shelters approximately 1.4 million Palestinians.

The Israeli military said in a statement that it will continue pursuing Hamas "everywhere in Gaza" until all the hostages that they are holding are back home.

Israel launched a large-scale offensive against Hamas in Gaza on Oct 7, 2023, following a surprise Hamas attack on southern Israel that killed about 1,200 people.

Rafah offensive amounts to ‘genocide’

The Palestinian presidency warned on Monday that Israel would commit a "crime of genocide" in Rafah.

Nabil Abu Rudeineh, a spokesman of the Palestinian presidency, said in a press statement that Israel has actually begun preparing to commit the largest "crime of genocide" by invading Rafah, holding the US administration responsible for these dangerous Israeli policies.

He said the invasion of Rafah would mean that 1.4 million Palestinian citizens would be subjected to "a genocidal massacre and displacement," calling on the US administration to act immediately to prevent it, and to hold Israel accountable for the serious "violations" it is committing against international law before it is too late.

'Withdrawal from talks'

A Palestinian source on Sunday told Xinhua that the delegation from Hamas will return to Egypt's capital Cairo on Tuesday to deliver the movement's "final response" to the Egyptian proposal over a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip and a prisoner exchange with Israel.

The source, who preferred not to mention his name, said the Hamas delegation, who departed Cairo on Sunday for consultations with the movement's leadership in Doha, Qatar, will return with a "final response" to the Egyptian proposal two days later.

According to the source, during the two-day talks in Cairo, the Hamas delegation met with Egyptian security officials and addressed "all issues" that could hinder reaching an agreement on the Gaza ceasefire and prisoner exchange with Israel, confirming that "significant" consensus has been achieved between the delegation and the Egyptian mediators.

The Egyptian proposal consists of three stages, aimed at exchanging Israeli hostages for Palestinian prisoners, taking necessary measures to reach a ceasefire, and restoring sustainable calm.

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The first stage would span 40 days and bring out a temporary halt of military operations between the two sides, an exchange of hostages and prisoners, and the return of internally displaced civilians to their areas of residence in Gaza.

It also includes facilitating the entry of sufficient humanitarian aid, relief materials, and fuel into Gaza, as well as the equipment needed to remove rubble, establish camps for the displaced, and rehabilitate and operate hospitals, health centers, and bakeries in the strip.

Earlier in the day, Hamas said in a statement that the current round of negotiations in Cairo had concluded, adding the delegation left Egypt on Sunday night for further consultation with the movement's leadership.

It affirmed that it takes "a positive and responsible approach with determination" towards reaching an agreement that "meets the national demands of our people, ends the aggression completely, achieves withdrawal of Israeli troops from the entire Gaza Strip, allows for the return of the displaced, intensifies relief efforts, begins reconstruction, and completes the prisoner exchange."

Also on Sunday, Hamas politburo chief Ismail Haniyeh said in a statement that his movement is keen to reach a comprehensive agreement that ends the current conflict in Gaza and ensures a prisoner exchange with Israel.

In the meantime, he accused Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of "inventing constant justifications to continue the aggression, expand the scope of the conflict, and sabotage mediation efforts."

Israel estimated that there were still about 134 Israelis held hostage in Gaza, whereas Hamas announced that 70 of them had been killed in Israeli indiscriminate airstrikes

The Hamas delegation arrived in Cairo on Saturday for talks on the Gaza ceasefire. Qatar, Egypt, and the United States are seeking to reach a deal for a prisoner exchange and a second ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, following the first one that ended last December.

Israel estimated that there were still about 134 Israelis held hostage in Gaza, whereas Hamas announced that 70 of them had been killed in Israeli indiscriminate airstrikes.

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Israel holds more than 9,000 Palestinian prisoners in its jails. According to relevant Palestinian organizations, some of these prisoners have died due to worsening conditions since the current Palestinian-Israeli conflict began last October.

The Israeli Army said at least three Israeli soldiers were killed and nine others injured in a Hamas mortar attack on Sunday.

It said in a statement that about ten mortars were fired from the southern Gaza Strip city of Rafah on the Kerem Shalom crossing between the Palestinian enclave and Israel.

Hamas has claimed responsibility for the attack.

According to the statement, Israeli warplanes, in retaliation, struck the launcher from which the projectiles were fired and a military structure located in the area.