Srinagar April 24 (KNS): Israel is likely to send troops into Rafah and that preparations were under way to evacuate war-displaced Palestinian civilians who have been sheltering there, reports said on Wednesday.

The Rafah offensive, postponed for several weeks amid disputes with the US, will happen very soon as ceasefire talks with Hamas stalled, they said.

The reports cited footage on social media that appeared to show the erection of a tent city for Rafah evacuees.

Israel has been saying Rafah is home to four intact Hamas combat battalions which, it says, have been reinforced by thousands of the Islamist militant group's retreating fighters.

Victory in the Gaza war would be impossible without taking Rafah, crushing Hamas and recovering any hostages which might be held there, the office of Israel PM has said. (KNS)