Marks of 9-month war on either side of Israel-Gaza border, as military vehicles seen in south Israel

(9 Jul 2024)
RESTRICTION SUMMARY:
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Southern Israel - 8 July 2024
1. Various of armored personnel carriers (APC) in open field
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Kibbutz Sa'ad, Israel - 8 July 2024
2. Various of posters along side of road with images of hostages held in Gaza
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Kibbutz Be’eri, Israel - 8 July 2024
3. Various of damaged homes at Kibbutz Be’eri, among the hardest hit communities during Oct. 7 Hamas attack
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Southern Israel - 8 July 2024
4. Various of destroyed buildings in Gaza as seen from southern Israel
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Southern Israel - 8 July 2024
5. Military vehicle driving along road
6. Truck carrying APC
STORYLINE:
Buildings bearing the marks of the nine-month Israel-Hamas war sat on either side of the Israel-Gaza border on Monday as military vehicles were seen in southern Israel.
This comes as talks on a cease-fire in the Gaza Strip are expected to resume this week.
Several officials say the devastation caused by Israel’s offensive has likely helped push Hamas to soften its demands.
Hamas over the weekend appeared to drop its long-standing demand that Israel promise to end the war as part of any cease-fire deal.
The sudden shift has raised new hopes for progress in the internationally brokered negotiations.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has boasted that military pressure - including Israel’s ongoing two-month offensive in the southern Gaza city of Rafah - "is what has led Hamas to enter negotiations."
Netanyahu’s office said Israeli negotiators will resume talks this week on a cease-fire with Hamas which had been stalled for weeks, signaling progress toward a deal to end the war in Gaza.
But it said "there are still gaps between the parties."
The war in Gaza has caused massive devastation across the besieged territory and displaced most of its 2.3 million people, often multiple times.
Israel launched its offensive after Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack, in which militants stormed into southern Israel, killed some 1,200 people - mostly civilians - and abducted about 250.
Since then, Israeli ground offensives and bombardments have killed more than 38,000 people in Gaza, according to the territory’s Health Ministry, which does not distinguish between combatants and civilians in its count.
AP video shot by Alon Bernstein
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