AMMAN, Feb 26 — Jordan’s King Abdullah II warned yesterday of a wider regional war if Israel presses on with its military campaign in the Gaza Strip during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan in March.

At a meeting with Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas, Abdullah warned "of the continuation of the war on Gaza during the holy month of Ramadan, which will increase the threat of expanding the conflict,” Jordan’s official Petra news agency reported.

Israel has warned that, if Iran-backed Hamas militants do not free the remaining hostages held in Gaza by the start of Ramadan it will keep fighting during the holy month, including in Rafah along the Egyptian border where around 1.4 million Gazans have sought refuge.

Ramadan is to begin on March 10 or 11, depending on the lunar calendar.

Negotiations for a ceasefire in Gaza have resumed in Doha, state-linked Egyptian media reported yesterday, but Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said any deal would not prevent an offensive in Rafah.

This, he said, would put Israel within weeks of "total victory” over Hamas whose October 7 attack on Israel triggered the war. — AFP