The Israeli military launched a ground offensive on Monday to seize Gaza City, according to a report by the Axios website citing Israeli officials.
The operation, which follows days of air strikes and bombardment, has sparked intense international concern as conditions in Gaza remain highly volatile and the humanitarian crisis deepens.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) had intensified air strikes on Gaza City and surrounding areas in recent days but had not deployed ground troops into the densely populated northern city, where hundreds of thousands of Palestinians are believed to be sheltering.
According to the Israeli military, around 300,000 Palestinians have left Gaza City in recent weeks, after its population swelled to roughly one million displaced people. The army has urged residents to evacuate, but compliance has been limited, with many fearing that other parts of the Gaza Strip are no safer.
Air strikes on Gaza City intensified on Monday afternoon, before Palestinian media began reporting that army tanks had entered the city.
According to the Times of Israel, families of hostages rushed to protest outside the prime minister’s residence, fearing that the operations in Gaza are putting their loved ones at risk.
Heavy bombardment in Gaza City - Residents trapped under rubble
Israel heavily bombarded Gaza City after midnight from Monday into Tuesday, according to testimonies received by AFP.
“There is intense, relentless shelling in Gaza City and the danger keeps rising,” said Ahmed Ghazal, adding that homes had been destroyed and people were trapped under the debris.
Mahmoud Basal, spokesperson for civil defence in the Gaza Strip, told Agence France-Presse that “the bombardment continues intensively across Gaza City and the numbers of dead and wounded keep increasing.”
He condemned a “large massacre,” citing “dead, wounded and missing under the rubble after Israeli air strikes on an apartment building near al-Shawa Square in Gaza City.”
Last week, Israel launched an air raid against Hamas leaders in Qatar, expanding its military actions that have spread across the Middle East.
