Israel Edges Into Rafah With Tension High Over Stalled Talks
- Netanyahu balancing calls to invade with need to free hostages
- US and allies pushing for fighting to end; deal still elusive
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Israel’s move to take control of the Rafah crossing into Egypt has sparked sharp debate about its end goal: Is this the start of a long-threatened invasion of the southern Gaza city, or an attempt to pressure Hamas to ease conditions for a cease-fire and the release of hostages?
The answer is both, according to Israeli officials close to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the military, who spoke about internal deliberations on condition of anonymity.