- Expands offensive as Middle East crisis deepens
- Approves huge new illegal settlement to split West Bank
- Military says troops already on outskirts of Gaza’s capital
The Israeli military has announced the first steps of an operation to take over Gaza City, saying an extra 60,000 reservists will be called up for the offensive.
The development comes as the government considers a new ceasefire proposal that Hamas has agreed on to pause the war, even as Israel separately approved a huge new illegal settlement in the West Bank.
Military spokesperson Effie Defrin said on Wednesday that the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) had “begun the preliminary operations and the first stages of the attack on Gaza City, and already now the forces are holding the outskirts of Gaza City”.
This is as Israeli troops clashed with Hamas fighters in Gaza on Wednesday and Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said later that the Prime Minister had sped up the timeline for taking control of Hamas strongholds and defeating the militant group.
However, on Thursday, UN Secretary General António Guterres demanded an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, saying it was necessary “to avoid the death and destruction that a military operation against Gaza City would inevitably cause”.
In other key developments, Israeli Defence Minister, Israel Katz’s order to send more troops into Gaza City came despite international criticism of the offensive, with fears of significant casualties and more mass displacement amid widening conditions of starvation in the territory.
According to the Gaza Municipality’s Emergency Committee Chief, Mustafa Qazzaat, the situation in Gaza City was “catastrophic” and “large numbers” were fleeing eastern neighbourhoods.
One resident Anis Daloul, 64, told the AFP News Agency that the Israeli military had “destroyed most of the buildings in Zeitoun and displaced thousands of people”.
But a military official said on Wednesday that the additional Israeli reserve soldiers would not report for duty until September, giving mediators time to bridge gaps between Hamas and Israel over the terms of any ceasefire and hostage deal.
Hamas said Israel’s plans to conquer Gaza City showed its “blatant disregard” for efforts to broker a truce.
The Israeli talk of a large-scale operation could primarily be intended to put pressure on the militant group in ceasefire talks, reports Peter Beaumont.
So far, more than 62,000 Palestinians have been killed in the Israeli war in Gaza since Hamas’s deadly attacks in October 2023, according to Gaza health officials.
Meanwhile, British UK Foreign Secretary, David Lammy has condemned Israel’s approval of the new settlement block in the West Bank as a “flagrant breach of international law”.
The plan would split the West Bank into two with the intention of ending any prospect of a Palestinian state, Israeli far-right Minister Bezalel Smotrich has said.
Also on Thursday, the Israeli military said it has received a report about a security incident near the settlement of Malachei HaShalom in the West Bank, adding that details were still under review. – With The Guardian report
