The IDF is finalizing plans to evacuate civilians from the city of Rafah and establish a strategic buffer zone along Gaza’s southern border, with Israeli officials saying the move is critical to dismantling Hamas’s military capabilities in the area.

At the heart of the plan is the construction of the Morag Corridor, a new security strip that will stretch from the Mediterranean coast through the site of the former Israeli settlement of Morag and connect with the Philadelphi Corridor along the Egyptian border, according to multiple Hebrew media reports. The corridor is expected to reach up to five kilometers (about 3.1 miles) into Gaza, effectively encircling Rafah.

“Rafah will be evacuated. This area will become a buffer zone to eliminate Hamas’s ability to regroup or smuggle weapons through the southern border,” Israeli Defense Minister Yisrael Katz said earlier this week.

The buffer zone is being created amid escalating IDF operations in southern Gaza. Updated evacuation maps released by the military show widened clearance zones near the Egypt-Gaza border, signaling a coming expansion of Israel’s presence in the area.

Israeli officials say the zone is aimed at preventing the reconstitution of Hamas forces and cutting off smuggling routes between Gaza and Egypt, which have historically been used to import weapons and other supplies.

“This operation is not only tactical but strategic. Control of Rafah and the Philadelphi Corridor will close off Hamas’s last remaining external supply routes,” an IDF official told Ynet.

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)