Fears in Gaza City over planned Israeli invasion
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Boston Globe
28 minutes ago
- Boston Globe
Israel to mobilize 60,000 reservists ahead of an expanded Gaza City operation
Palestinians rushed to collect humanitarian aid airdropped by parachutes into Gaza City, on August 7. Jehad Alshrafi/Associated Press Advertisement Gaza City operation could begin within days An Israeli military official, speaking on the condition of anonymity in line with military regulations, said troops will operate in parts of Gaza City where they haven't been deployed yet and where Israel believes Hamas is still active. Israeli troops in the the city's Zeitoun neighborhood and in Jabaliya, a refugee camp in the northern Gaza Strip, are already preparing the groundwork for the expanded operation, which could begin within days. Advertisement Though the timeline wasn't clear, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said Wednesday that Netanyahu 'has directed that the timetables ... be shortened' for launching the offensive. Gaza City is Hamas' military and governing stronghold, and one of the last places of refuge in the northern Strip, where hundreds of thousands are sheltering. Israeli troops will be targeting Hamas' vast underground tunnel network there, the official added. Although Israel has targeted and killed much of Hamas' senior leadership, parts of Hamas are actively regrouping and carrying out attacks, including launching rockets towards Israel, the official said. Netanyahu has said the war's objectives are to secure the release of remaining hostages and ensure that Hamas and other militants can never again threaten Israel. The planned offensive, announced earlier this month, comes amid heightened international condemnation of Israel's restrictions on food and medicine reaching Gaza and fears that many Palestinians will be forced to flee. 'It's pretty obvious that it will just create another mass displacement of people who have been displaced repeatedly since this phase of the conflict started,' United Nations spokesman Stephane Dujarric told reporters. Associated Press journalists saw small groups heading south from the city this week, but it's unclear how many others will voluntarily flee. Some said they would wait to see how events unfold, with many insisting that nowhere is safe from airstrikes. 'What we're seeing in Gaza is nothing short of apocalyptic reality for children, for their families, and for this generation,' Ahmed Alhendawi, regional director of Save the Children, said in an interview. 'The plight and the struggle of this generation of Gaza is beyond being described in words.' Advertisement An Israeli tank moved through an area near the Israeli-Gaza border, on Wednesday. Maya Levin/Associated Press Some reservists question the war's goals The call-up comes amid a growing campaign by exhausted reservists who accuse the Israeli government of perpetuating the war for political reasons and failing to bring home the 50 remaining hostages, 20 of whom are believed to be alive. The hostages' families and former army and intelligence chiefs have also expressed opposition to the expanded operation in Gaza City. Most of the families want an immediate ceasefire and worry that an expanded assault could imperil the surviving hostages. Guy Poran, a retired air force pilot who has organized veterans campaigning to end the war, said many reservists are spent after repeated tours lasting hundreds of days and resent those who haven't been called up. 'Even those that are not ideologically against the current war or the government's new plans don't want to go because of fatigue or their families or their businesses,' he said. Hamas-led militants started the war when they attacked Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killing roughly 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducting 251. Most of the hostages have been released in ceasefires or other deals. Hamas says it will only free the rest in exchange for a lasting ceasefire and an Israeli withdrawal. Supporters of Israeli hostages held in the Gaza Strip attended a rally demanding their release and calling for an end to the war, in Tel Aviv on Tuesday. Ohad Zwigenberg/Associated Press Israel has yet to respond to a ceasefire proposal Arab mediators and Hamas said this week that the militant group's leaders Egypt and Qatar have said they are waiting for Israel's response. Egypt's foreign minister, Badr Abdelatty, spoke by phone Wednesday with U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff to discuss the proposed ceasefire in the hopes of winning Israel's acceptance, the Egyptian foreign ministry said. During the call, Abdelatty urged Israel to 'put an end to this unjust war' by negotiating a comprehensive deal and 'to lay the foundations for a just settlement of the Palestinian cause,' according to the Egyptian government. Advertisement An Israeli official who spoke on condition of anonymity because they weren't authorized to speak to the media said Israel is in constant contact with the mediators in an effort to secure the hostages' release. Netanyahu has repeatedly said he will oppose a deal that doesn't include the 'complete defeat of Hamas.' Also Wednesday, Israel gave final approval to a controversial settlement project east of Jerusalem in the occupied West Bank. The development in what's called E1 would effectively cut the territory in two. Palestinians and rights groups say it could destroy hopes for a future Palestinian state. Gaza's death toll rises At least 27 Palestinians were killed and more than 100 were wounded Wednesday at the Zikim crossing in northwestern Gaza as a crowd rushed toward a U.N. convoy transporting humanitarian aid, according to health officials. 'The majority of casualties were killed by gunshots fired by the Israeli troops,' said Fares Awad, head of the Health Ministry's ambulance and emergency service in northern Gaza. 'The rush toward the trucks and the stampede killed and injured others.' The dead included people seeking aid and Palestinians guarding the convoy, Awad told the AP. The Israeli military did not immediately respond to a request for comment. This picture taken from a position on the Israeli border with the Gaza Strip shows Israeli troops transporting a bulldozer near the besieged Palestinian territory on Tuesday. JACK GUEZ/AFP via Getty Images More than 62,122 people have been killed during Israel's offensive, Gaza's Health Ministry said Monday. The ministry is part of the Hamas-run government and staffed by medical professionals. The ministry does not say how many of the dead were civilians or combatants, but it said women and children make up around half of them. Advertisement In addition, 154 adults have died from malnutrition-related causes since late June, when the ministry began counting such deaths, and 112 children have died from malnutrition-related causes since the war began.
New York Times
30 minutes ago
- New York Times
Thursday Briefing: Israel's Planned Offensive
Israel prepared an assault on Gaza City Israeli officials said yesterday that the military was moving forward with plans to take over Gaza City. Even after nearly two years of war, the city and its surrounding neighborhoods remain a stronghold for Hamas, an official said. An Israeli military official said that troops had reached the city's outskirts and that tents were being moved into southern Gaza for people who would be displaced once the operation begins. The plan called for troops to encircle the city, allow the population to move south through checkpoints to catch militants, then move in with force. About 60,000 reservists would be called to backfill troops sent to Gaza City, and 20,000 would have their orders extended. The buildup began as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu weighed a cease-fire proposal, agreed upon by Hamas, that would ensure the release of some hostages. In Israel, the families of hostages are worried that Hamas would kill them in response to the offensive, while hard-right politicians threatened to quit the government if Netanyahu were to accept the cease-fire deal. In Gaza City, thousands considered moving to the central or southern parts of the territory. But many of the city's inhabitants have already relocated repeatedly — some said they won't do so again. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
Bloomberg
30 minutes ago
- Bloomberg
Microsoft Activists Detained Protesting Israel Ties at HQ Campus
Microsoft Corp. activist employees and supporters were detained by police after returning to the company's headquarters for a second day to demand that the software maker sever business ties with the Israeli military. Protesters were warned to leave on Tuesday or face trespassing charges, and quickly did so. They gathered again Wednesday afternoon, setting up tents and chanting slogans.
