Israel bombards Gaza City to crush Hamas
JERUSALEM—Israel launched its offensive in Gaza City on Tuesday, vowing to overwhelm a city already in ruins from nearly two years of war as thousands of Palestinians fled in vehicles strapped with mattresses and other belongings that clogged a coastal road.
The operation into the largest Palestinian city escalated a conflict that has roiled the Middle East and likely pushed any ceasefire with Hamas farther out of reach. The military would not offer a timeline for the offensive that aims to crush the militant group’s ability to fight, but Israeli media suggested it could take months.
“Gaza is burning,” Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz declared as the operation began. Heavy bombardment pounded the city, and troops began moving in from the outskirts after weeks of airstrikes and buildup toward the renewed assault.
‘Entire family’
The offensive began the same day that independent experts commissioned by the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) accused Israel of committing genocide in Gaza. Israel rejected the allegation, calling the report “distorted and false.”
One woman, Saud al-Sakani, said her daughter, son-in-law and their children were killed in a strike that flattened their home with about 40 people inside. “An entire family!” she cried, weeping over their bodies at Shifa Hospital’s morgue. “Many are still under the rubble.”
On a brief visit to the region, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio warned that there was a “very short window of time in which a deal can happen” to end the war.
The new assault did not deter another invitation to the United States for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. He said on Tuesday that President Donald Trump invited him to the White House on Sept. 29, after the Israeli leader addresses the United Nations General Assembly. It will mark Netanyahu’s fourth visit since Trump took office in January.
Main phase
Meanwhile, a missile fired by Iranian-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen set off rocket sirens in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv. The Israeli military said it was working to intercept the projectile, which was fired after Israel carried out airstrikes on the rebel-held port city of Hodeida in Yemen.
The Houthis have regularly fired drones and missiles at Israel in what they say is solidarity with the Palestinians.
Israeli forces have carried out multiple large-scale raids into Gaza City over the course of the war, causing mass displacement and heavy destruction, only to see militants regroup later. This time, Israel has pledged to take control of the entire city, which experts say is experiencing famine.
An Israeli military official, speaking on condition of anonymity in line with military guidelines, said the “main phase” of the Gaza City operation had begun and troops had started moving.
Hamas militants
The official said the Israeli military believes there are 2,000 to 3,000 Hamas militants left in Gaza City, as well as tunnels used by the group. Hamas’ military capabilities have been vastly diminished. It now mainly carries out guerrilla-style attacks, with small groups of fighters planting explosives or attacking military outposts before melting away.
Ismail Zaydah, 39, said he fled from his home in Gaza City’s Sheikh Radwan neighborhood to an area near the coastal road. He said trucks carrying people south to an Israeli-designated humanitarian zone charge around $1,000, even as many families in Gaza City are starving.
“We fled with nothing but a few pieces of clothing. People are pitching their tents in western Gaza City, and they are sleeping among human waste because there is no place for them to go,” he said.
An estimated 1 million Palestinians were living in the Gaza City region before warnings to evacuate began ahead of the offensive, and the Israeli military estimates 350,000 people have left the city.
