Hamas official says over 6,000 fighters killed so far in Gaza war

Amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas, the Palestinian militant group said that it estimates of losing about 6,000 of its fighters, according to news agency Reuters.

A Hamas official based in Qatar told Reuters that despite this, the group can continue fighting and is prepared for a protracted conflict in both Rafah and Gaza.

"Netanyahu's options are difficult and ours are too. He can occupy Gaza but Hamas is still standing and fighting. He hasn't achieved his goals to kill the Hamas leadership or annihilate Hamas," he added.

The figure stated by Hamas is about half as reported by the Israeli army, which states 12,000 fighters from Gaza's ruling group have already been killed in the conflict.

The claims by the militant group are a rare acknowledgement of enduringsignificant losses in the Gaza fighting.

Return hostages by Ramadan or face Rafah ground offensive, Israel warns

Meanwhile, Israel's war cabinet issued a warning on Sunday (Feb 18) stating that the Israeli military would launch its ground offensive in the Gaza Strip's Rafah by March 10 if hostages held by Hamas in the besieged Palestinian territory are not freed within the next few weeks.

According to a report by The Times of Israel, war cabinet member Benny Gantz said, "The world must know, and Hamas leaders must know, if by Ramadan our hostages are not home, the fighting will continue everywhere, including the Rafah area."

Gantz further said that Israel would carry out the offensive in a coordinated manner, facilitating the evacuation of civilians in dialogue with the United States and Egypt to minimise civilian casualties.

Palestinians hope international community can pressure Israel against entering Rafah

Palestinians in the Rafah tent camps on Sunday voiced concerns about the nearing Israeli offensive.

“We hope that the international community pressures (Israel) not to enter Rafah, because the number of people that are in Rafah, is big. Even if you want to displace them, how will you do it for such a number? 1.3 million or 1.4 million people need to be displaced. Where will they go?” Hassan Al-Yakobi, retired teacher from Gaza City, told the news agency Reuters.

"We have young children and our stuff, these are the things every displaced anywhere is suffering. Other than this, what can we say? We are suffering. We walked from Khan Younis to Kaf Miraj (area between Khan Younis and Rafah) while holding our things, it’s all very tiring,” he added.

(With inputs from agencies)