Gaza war latest: Israel launches first stage of Gaza City invasion as Palestinians flee new assault
Thousands of Palestinians are fleeing Gaza City after the Israeli military launched the next stage of its ground offensive, despite widespread international condemnation.
Brigadier General Effie Defrin said that IDF troops had begun circling the outskirts of Gaza City as part of the first stages of its new assault.
Israeli forces have escalated shelling on Sabra and Tuffah neighbourhoods, as hundreds of Palestinians fled Zeitoun and Sabra.
Following a clash with Hamas south of Khan Younis in the strip on Wednesday, the IDF spokesman said: “We will deepen the attack on Hamas in Gaza City, a stronghold of governmental and military terror for the terrorist organization.”
Hamas, in a statement on Telegram, accused Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu of obstructing the ceasefire deal in favour of continuing a “brutal war against innocent civilians in Gaza City.”
It comes as Israel said it would call up to 60,000 reservists for the new offensive and other heavily populated areas of the war-torn Gaza Strip.
More than 62,000 Palestinians have been killed since 7 October 2023, according to the enclave’s Hamas-run health ministry.
