Netanyahu Vows to Widen Assau 05/10 06:47

   Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Thursday that a U.S. threat 
to withhold some weapons would not deter Israel from expanding its offensive in 
Gaza.

   (AP) -- About 110,000 people have fled Rafah in southern Gaza and food and 
fuel supplies in the area are critically low, a U.N. official says.

   All crossings into southern Gaza remain closed, cutting off supplies and 
preventing medical evacuations and the movement of humanitarian staff, said 
Georgios Petropoulos, an official for the U.N.'s Office for the Coordination of 
Humanitarian Affairs working in Rafah.

   Some 1.3 million Palestinians -- over half Gaza's population -- had sought 
refuge in Rafah.

   The World Food Program will run out of food for distribution in southern 
Gaza by Saturday unless more aid arrives, Petropoulos said.

   U.N. officials warn that the lack of fuel is undermining medical facilities, 
water supplies and sewage systems across Gaza.

   Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Thursday that a U.S. threat 
to withhold some weapons would not deter Israel from expanding its offensive in 
Gaza. A limited Israeli operation earlier this week captured the Gaza side of 
Rafah's border crossing with Egypt, throwing humanitarian operations into 
crisis.

   The death toll from the war in Gaza has soared to more than 34,500 people, 
according to local health officials, and caused vast destruction to apartments, 
hospitals, mosques and schools across several cities. The U.N. says northern 
Gaza is already in a state of "full-blown famine."

   The war began Oct. 7 when Hamas attacked southern Israel, killing around 
1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducting about 250 others. Israel says 
militants still hold around 100 hostages and the remains of more than 30 others.