内容摘要：, and has been carrying out daily waves of strikes. Ground forces have expanded a buffer zone and encircled the southern city of Rafah, and now control

, and has been carrying out daily waves of strikes. Ground forces have expanded a buffer zone and encircled the southern city of Rafah, and now control

the prime minister said Israeli forces were days away from entering Gaza “with great strength to complete the mission.”Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz confirmed Friday that strikes in Gaza earlier in the week targeted the presumed leader of Hamas’ military wing in Gaza, Mohammed Sinwar, although there has been no word on his fate. He is the brother of the slain former leader in Gaza,

— a mastermind of the Oct. 7, 2023, attack.Israeli soldiers work on tanks and APCs at a staging area near the border with the Gaza Strip, in southern Israel, Thursday, May 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)Israeli soldiers work on tanks and APCs at a staging area near the border with the Gaza Strip, in southern Israel, Thursday, May 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)

In Israel, a group that supports the families of hostages said they awoke Friday with “heavy hearts” to reports of increased attacks and called on Netanyahu to “join hands” with Trump’s efforts to free hostages. On Monday, Israeli-American Edan Alexander was released after backdoor U.S.-Hamas diplomacy.In the Oct. 7 attack, Hamas-led militants killed 1,200 people and abducted 251 others. Israel’s retaliatory offensive has killed more than 53,000 Palestinians, many of them women and children, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry.

Almost 3,000 have been killed since

Of the hostages that remain in Gaza, Israel believes as many as 23 are still alive, although Israeli authorities have expressed concern for the status of three of those.UNICEF spokesperson Jonathan Crickx on Thursday said 65-70% of Gaza’s water system is damaged. Aid workers have instead set up water distribution points that rely on trucking.

But it’s difficult to reach people when fuel has become scarce, Crickx told The Associated Press.“The children are, of course, bearing the brunt of this war,” he said.

Water availability has plummeted to an average of 3-5 liters per person per day, according to the Palestinian Water Authority. That’s less than the 15 liters that the World Health Organization says people need to survive.A pipeline operated by Israel had been supplying 70% of Gaza City’s water since the war began, but it was damaged with the renewed Israeli offensive in April. Desalination plants had supplied about 7% of Gaza’s water needs before the war, until the aquifer became contaminated and depleted.