Israel signals tactics shift, troop pullback

STORY: Israel is withdrawing some of its forces from Gaza to shift to more targeted operations against Hamas, an official said on Monday. These soldiers were seen repairing equipment at a base near the Gaza border. A base commander said they would return to the enclave soon. The shift to "mopping up" operations signals a new phase in Israel’s offensive and is expected to last for months.Some of the troops pulled out of Gaza would be prepared for rotation to the northern border with Lebanon, an official said. The reduction would also allow some reservists to return to civilian life, shoring up Israel’s war-battered economy. On Monday the U.S. Navy announced the Gerald R. Ford aircraft carrier was returning to its home port in Virginia after being deployed to the Eastern Mediterranean following the outbreak of hostilities. The war in Gaza has reduced much of the territory to rubble and plunged its 2.3 million people into a humanitarian disaster. Palestinian health authorities say around 22,000 people have been killed. The assault on the enclave followed the surprise Hamas attack on Israel on Oct. 7 in which Israel said 1,200 people were killed and 240 taken hostage. Israel’s defense minister said Monday that some of the Israeli communities north of the Gaza Strip that were evacuated would be able to return in the near future. At this Palestinian tent camp in Rafah on New Year’s Eve, children played in the sand while they focused on their survival. This 11-year-old girl said her wish for 2024 was not to die. "There is no bathroom, no food, no water. Our childhood is gone…" she said. Nearby at the Rafah Zoo, displaced people camped out between cages, holding starving animals. Some of the families sheltering here say they cannot afford food themselves.