Palestinians flee Khan Younis yet again as Israel launches new assault

Israeli troops launched a new assault Friday into the southern Gaza city of Khan Younis, targeting Hamas fighters who the military claims still operate there despite repeated offensives, as American, Qatari and Egyptian mediators renewed their push for Israel and Hamas to reach a ceasefire deal.

Israeli evacuation orders triggered yet another exodus of Palestinians from the heavily destroyed eastern districts of Khan Younis, where many had just returned less than two weeks ago — after the Israeli military's last incursion into the city in July.

Thousands fled Thursday, carrying essentials like small gas cylinders, mattresses, tents, backpacks and blankets.

Officials from Israel and the United States have said they believe Yahya Sinwar, Hamas's newly named top leader and one of the architects of the Oct. 7 attack on Israel, could be hiding in tunnels under Khan Younis.

The military said Friday its warplanes struck 30 Hamas targets in the city, including fighters and weapons storage sites. It said troops were searching for Hamas tunnels and other infrastructure while engaging in combat "above and below ground."

After 10 months of war in Gaza, the mediators' push aims to resume indirect negotiations for a ceasefire that have been on hold since Sinwar's predecessor, Ismail Haniyeh, was assassinated in a presumed Israeli blast in Tehran on July 31.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office confirmed Thursday that it would send negotiators to talks that mediators have called for on Aug. 15, to be held in either Qatar's capital of Doha or Egypt's capital of Cairo.

There was no immediate response from Hamas, which announced Tuesday that Sinwar, the group's leader in Gaza, would replace Haniyeh as the group's top leader. Haniyeh previously served as the key interlocutor in the negotiations.

Haniyeh's killing and that of a top Hezbollah commander in an Israeli airstrike in Beirut brought vows of retaliation from Hezbollah and Iran. International diplomats have been scrambling to prevent an escalation and to seal a deal to stop the fighting in Gaza and release the hostages still captive in the enclave.

The head of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard's Quds Force, which leads the guard's operations around the region, repeated promises of retaliation in a letter to Sinwar, a copy of which was seen by The Associated Press. "We are preparing to avenge his blood," Ismail Qaani wrote, referring to Haniyeh.

International diplomats have been scrambling to prevent an escalation and to seal a deal to stop the fighting in Gaza and release the hostages still captive in the enclave.

In a joint statement, the United States, Egypt and Qatar called for the new round of talks, to be held either in Doha or Cairo, and pressed both sides to move ahead.

"There is no further time to waste nor excuses from any party for further delay," they said, adding that the negotiators have already finalized a framework for the deal.

They said mediators were prepared to present a final compromise "that resolves the remaining implementation issues in a manner that meets the expectations of all parties." It did not elaborate on what that would look like.