JERUSALEM / ANKARA

The Israeli army has recommended reaching a ceasefire agreement in the Gaza Strip after nearly two years of relentless war, a senior military official said Sunday.

“The army recommends that the political leadership reach an agreement,” the public broadcaster KAN said, citing the military official.

The official expressed hope that such a deal could be finalized “this week.”

The army is ready to show “flexibility” depending on the decisions made by Israel’s political leadership, the source said, without elaborating.

The comments come as the Israeli army intensified its offensive in Gaza, deepening its siege and starvation policies against civilians in the Palestinian enclave.

Early Sunday, the army issued an evacuation warning for residents in the central city of Deir al-Balah, the first time since the beginning of the war, in preparation for a possible new ground onslaught.

The evacuation order comes as indirect negotiations continued between Israel and Hamas in Doha, Qatar, to reach a ceasefire and prisoner exchange agreement.

On Saturday, a Palestinian source revealed that Hamas has received new maps from mediators showing current zones of Israeli control across Gaza, which the movement is now examining as part of the negotiation process.

Israel has killed nearly 59,000 Palestinians, most of them women and children, in the Gaza Strip since October 2023.

The military campaign has destroyed the enclave, collapsed the health system and led to severe food shortages.

Last November, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.

Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war on the enclave.