Israel has approved a potential assault on the Gaza city of Rafah while also keeping ceasefire hopes alive with plans to send another delegation to Qatar for talks on a possible hostage deal with fighter group Hamas, Reuters reports.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said he had approved a plan to attack the city on the southern edge of the shattered Palestinian enclave where more than half of its 2.3 million residents are sheltering after five months of war.

The Israeli statement said the Israeli Defence Force was “preparing operationally and for the evacuation of the population” of Rafah.

It gave no time frame and no immediate evidence of extra preparations on the ground.

Read full story here