WASHINGTON: Israel’s decision to pull back some of the troops from Gaza gives a signal that it might shift to lower-intensity of operations in the north of Palestinian enclave, a U.S. official said on Monday.
The official told western media that the US has always been encouraging such strategy. He noted that fighting in the north of Gaza is still going on, which does not reflect any changes in the south.
Israel earlier said that the war in Gaza, that has already plunged its 2.3 million people into a humanitarian disaster, had many months to go.
An Israeli official on Monday said that its military would draw forces inside Gaza this month and shift to more localized operations.
He said the troops reduction would allow some residents of Gaza to return to civilian life.
Residents of the area on Monday said that Israel pulled tanks out of some Gaza districts as Tal Aviv announced to change war tactics and cut back on troop numbers.
Nearly 22,000 Palestinians killed in Israeli bombardment
According to Gaza health ministry nearly 22,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children, have been killed in relentless Israeli bombardments so far.
Health Ministry spokesman Ashraf al-Qudra announced the figure during a televised press conference, revealing an additional 156 deaths in the past 24 hours.
The toll also includes a staggering 57,697 people wounded in Gaza since the start of the Israeli military campaign.
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The UN has said that some 1.87 million Palestinians, over 80 percent of Gaza’s population, have left their homes because of the Israeli bombardment of the besieged enclave.
Earlier, Qatar helped broker weeklong cease-fire of the Gaza war in November. During the pause in fighting 106 Israeli captives and 240 Palestinian prisoners were freed.
The Israeli raids have almost destroyed entire neighborhoods in northern Gaza. Israeli ground troops have been facing heavy resistance from Hamas fighters in the area.
