The threat of an Israeli incursion into Gaza's southernmost town of Rafah persisted Sunday, but Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu promised "safe passage" to civilians displaced there.

Israeli air strikes that targeted a building in an upscale area near the Syrian capital killed three people early Saturday, a war monitor said.

Hamas on Saturday warned that any Israeli military operation in the Gazan city of Rafah could lead to "tens of thousands" of dead and injured.

The Palestinian militant group, at war with Israel, warned in a statement of catastrophic repercussions of going into the city, where more than one million civilians have fled to escape Israeli bombardment elsewhere in Gaza.

Israeli airstrikes killed at least 28 Palestinians in Rafah early Saturday, hours after Israel's prime minister said he asked the military to plan for the evacuation of hundreds of thousands of people from the southern Gaza city ahead of a ground invasion.

Benjamin Netanyahu did not provide details or a timeline, but the announcement set off widespread panic. More than half of Gaza's 2.3 million people are packed into Rafah, many after being uprooted repeatedly by Israeli evacuation orders that now cover two-thirds of Gaza's territory. It's not clear where they could run next.

Four top Middle Eastern diplomats reiterated calls for "irreversible" steps towards the recognition of a Palestinian state during talks on the war in Gaza hosted by Saudi Arabia, state media reported on Friday.

Israel conducted fresh strikes on southern Gaza's overcrowded border town of Rafah on Friday, where more than a million displaced Palestinians have sought shelter, with key backer the United States warning of a looming "disaster".

Israel's military response in the Gaza Strip to the October 7 attacks by Hamas has been "over the top" and has "got to stop," U.S. President Joe Biden said Thursday.

A German Navy frigate set sail on Thursday toward the Red Sea, where Berlin plans to have it take part in a European Union mission to help defend cargo ships from attacks by Yemen's Iranian-backed Houthi rebels that are hampering trade.

The Hessen set off from the North Sea port of Wilhelmshaven with about 240 servicepeople on board. The aim is to have it in place once the EU mission is given the official go-ahead and the German parliament has approved a mandate for the ship to join in, which is expected at the end of February.

Iraq on Thursday condemned a U.S. air strike that killed a senior commander from a pro-Iran armed group accused of having been involved in attacks on American troops in the region.

The U.S. attack on Wednesday came after a wave of strikes on Iran-linked targets in Iraq and Syria last week following the killing of three American troops in neighboring Jordan on January 28.

Israeli airstrikes killed over a dozen people overnight and into Thursday in Rafah in the Gaza Strip, hours after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu rejected Hamas' cease-fire terms and vowed to expand the offensive into the southern Gaza town.

More than half of strip's population has fled to Rafah, on the mostly sealed border with Egypt, which is also the main entry point for humanitarian aid. Egypt has warned that any ground operation there or mass displacement across the border would undermine its four-decade-old peace treaty with Israel.