Netanyahu told Blinken Israel will go into Rafah alone if needed

JERUSALEM - Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Friday that Israel remained determined to send troops into the southern Gaza city of Rafah, where more than 1 million Palestinians are sheltering, and would do so without US backing if necessary.

Netanyahu said in a statement he had told visiting US Secretary of State Antony Blinken that there was no way to defeat the Islamist movement Hamas without going into Rafah. "And I told him that I hope we will do it with the support of the US, but if we have to - we will do it alone," he said.