A report by Amale Chehadeh, English adaptation by Nadine Sassine
After Israel's retreat twice within 48 hours from responding to Iran, reports have emerged about an understanding between Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Washington.
Under this agreement, the United States allows the invasion of Rafah in exchange for Israel refraining from attacking Iran and limiting its response to a more moderate level.
The victims of this deal are the Palestinians of Rafah, who will be caught in the crossfire as the Israeli army conducts training exercises in preparation for the battle and intensifies fighting in Al-Nuseirat ahead of the attack on Rafah.
According to the Israeli plan, Rafah will be divided into blocks, with fighting occurring in stages in each block separately. Palestinians will be required to leave each block before the start of each battle and will be allowed to return after the fighting ends and Hamas fighters are defeated.
Prior to the invasion, the army will distribute leaflets to residents, asking them to evacuate their homes and relocate to designated safe areas. The plan suggests that most Palestinians will move to Al-Mawasi, Khan Yunis, and the tent camp area, which has seen the purchase of to 40,000 tents to accommodate people.
In the next stage, the army will begin fighting, expected to last between three and four weeks.
As preparations for the operation continue, and with military vehicles moving toward Gaza amid escalating security tensions on the northern front, the prisoner exchange deal has stalled, and protests have intensified.
Israelis are divided on whether the Rafah invasion is necessary to pressure Hamas into accepting a prisoner exchange deal, or whether the overlap of fronts threatens Israel's security.
As the army requests a special budget to complete the fight in Gaza and acquire squadrons of F-35 and F-15 aircraft, disagreements have intensified between the army and the Israeli government.
Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich's refusal to approve the aircraft purchase has sparked tensions, with the army warning of the consequences of not ensuring its military needs are met to achieve its objectives in Gaza after nearly 200 days.