I srael started moving forward with its long-anticipated military offensive in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip late Monday. The military operation began hours after Hamas announced it had accepted a Gaza ceasefire deal, which Israeli officials called a “Hamas deception.”

Israel said the terms of a ceasefire deal Hamas accepted on Monday remained “far from” meeting its demands and warned its military operations in Rafah would continue, even as it sent negotiators to talk to mediators.