TEL AVIV: Israel’s military said Monday that it was carrying out strikes in the southern Gaza city of Rafah, shortly after Hamas announced it had accepted a cease-fire proposal to halt its war with Israel.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said Monday that the cease-fire proposal was “far from Israel’s essential demands,” but that Israel would send negotiators to Cairo to continue talks for a cease-fire.

Meanwhile in Washington, the White House urged all sides to make a deal. Negotiators in Egypt have been trying to bring about a temporary halt in the fighting and the release of hostages still held by Hamas in Gaza.

“We want to get these hostages out,” said John Kirby, White House national security spokesperson.

“We want to get a cease-fire in place for six weeks. We want to increase humanitarian assistance and the last thing that I want to do is say anything at this podium that’s going to put that process at risk. Regardless, as we’ve said before, we still believe that reaching an agreement is the absolute best outcome, not just for the hostages, but for the Palestinian people.”

Israel Defense Forces on Monday evening posted on the social media platform X that it was “currently conducting targeted strikes against Hamas terror targets in eastern Rafah.”

Netanyahu’s office said in a statement, “The war cabinet unanimously decided that Israel continue the operation in Rafah to exert military pressure on Hamas in order to advance the release of our hostages and the other goals of the war.”

On this, too, the White House expressed a strong stance, with President Joe Biden speaking to Netanyahu in a Monday morning phone call.

“It doesn’t matter whether it’s missiles or rockets; things that kill innocent people, that’s not okay,” Kirby said. “And again, the president made it clear that we don’t want to see operations in Rafah that put at risk those million and a half people that are there.”

A White House statement said Biden “reiterated his clear position on Rafah” during his call with the Israeli leader. It also said that Netanyahu agreed “to ensure the Kerem Shalom crossing is open for humanitarian assistance for those in need.”

Biden also hosted Jordan’s king at the White House, where they spoke about the situation in Gaza.

Earlier Monday, Israel said about 100,000 people in eastern parts of Rafah should evacuate their homes and go to an expanded humanitarian area that now includes Khan Younis.

(VOA)