The Israeli war cabinet will hold a meeting this afternoon, Thursday, followed by a meeting of the expanded political-security cabinet, during which the resumption of negotiations on a prisoner exchange deal between Israel and the Hamas movement will be discussed.

Israeli political officials said that Israel "tends to leave the Qatari negotiating axis and put full weight on the Egyptian axis," as they were quoted by the Ynet website.

According to Ynet, Israel considers that "Qatar did not exert the pressure required of it, including closing the accounts of Hamas leaders and exiling their families."

Ynet added, "Against this background, and also ahead of a future military operation in Rafah, the weight for Israel shifts to Egypt."

Today, the war cabinet is discussing the plan to invade Rafah, which will be reviewed during the expanded political-security cabinet meeting, amid Israeli claims that “a military operation in Rafah is necessary, and it will also lead to great military pressure on Hamas to agree to a deal.”

The Israeli Army Chief of Staff, Herzi Halevy, and the head of the Shin Bet, Ronen Bar, met with the Director of Egyptian Intelligence, Abbas Kamel, in Cairo yesterday, and claimed that an Israeli military operation in Rafah would not lead to an influx of residents from the Gaza Strip to Egyptian territory. Ynet indicated that this meeting is "part of coordination" between the two sides.

However, the spokesman for the Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ahmed Abu Zeid, said yesterday that “there is international and global rejection of Israel’s planned operation to invade Rafah because it will result in a humanitarian catastrophe that no one can bear,” and that “Israel must secure a safe haven for the Palestinians, because it is the occupying power, according to Geneva Conventions and the United Nations.

Abu Zeid added, “Any attempt to blow up the situation inside the Gaza Strip, and increase pressure on the Palestinians on the Egyptian-Israeli border, will lead to tension in the relationship with the Israeli side.” But at the same time, he pointed out that the presence of tension does not mean that Egypt will stop communicating with all... Parties to try to resolve the crisis.

According to Israeli media, a “green light” has not yet been given to the army to evacuate the displaced people who gathered in Rafah, numbering about 1.4 million people, in order to carry out an invasion of the city and its area, but satellite images indicate the establishment of a new “tent city” near Khan Yunis to shelter displaced people from Rafah.

The Israeli army is exerting pressure at the political level to carry out the Rafah invasion, claiming that such an invasion will lead to the elimination of Hamas forces, according to Israeli media.

According to Israeli Channel 12, the evacuation of civilians from Rafah may take 3-4 weeks.