Live Updates | Israeli Military Prepares to Take Control of Gaza City Amid Global Criticism

Israel’s security cabinet approval of a plan to take control of Gaza City has sent shockwaves through the international community. Hamas says it is ready for a “comprehensive deal” on hostages and a ceasefire but warns of “fierce resistance” against Israel’s move. Residents in Gaza are torn, fearful of further displacement and angry at both Israel’s offensive and Hamas’s failure to release hostages. One Gaza City resident told the BBC, “I don’t know where to go. Where should we go to?” International criticism is strong: UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer called the plan “wrong,” while Germany, Israel’s second-largest arms supplier, has suspended...

Israel’s security cabinet recently held a marathon 10-hour meeting marked by sharp clashes, particularly between Prime Minister Netanyahu and army chief Lieutenant General Eyal Zamir, who opposed the new military plan. The plan that emerged focuses on a “takeover of Gaza City,” diverging from Netanyahu’s earlier statements about controlling all of Gaza. Though the term “occupation” is avoided, many see it as such. This move is widely expected to be just the first step in a broader operation, despite opposition from military leaders, public polls, hostage families, and international voices—including key allies like Germany, urging restraint. googletag.cmd.push(function()...

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has stated that negotiations with Hamas “fell apart” the same day French President Emmanuel Macron announced France’s plan to officially recognize a Palestinian state in September. Speaking on Global Catholic TV’s The World Over, Rubio said symbolic moves like France’s recognition have made it “harder to get peace and harder to achieve a deal with Hamas.” Last month, Macron called for an end to the Gaza war and declared France would recognize the State of Palestine, a decision condemned by both the US and Israel. googletag.cmd.push(function() { googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-1752148780792-0'); }); ...

Sir Richard Dalton, former UK ambassador, told BBC Radio 5 Live he doubts Benjamin Netanyahu will be influenced by European criticism of Israel’s Gaza takeover plans. He described Europe’s reaction as “shameful,” accusing it of offering “merely mouthed words and some very mild actions, always too little and too late.” Dalton added that the UK and others “come across as not standing for anything real in the world of international law and human rights.” He also said the British government is failing to reflect growing public disgust over Israeli policies and the IDF’s brutality. googletag.cmd.push(function() { googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-1752148780792-0'); }); ...

Gaza City residents face a perilous repeat of the mass southward migration ordered by Israel after the 7 October 2023 attacks — but the situation is far more dangerous now. In 2023, many fled along Salah al-Din road, Gaza’s main north-south artery. Today, that route lies within an IDF-designated “dangerous combat zone.” This leaves the al-Rashid coastal road as the primary path toward the already crowded al-Mawasi area, previously declared a “humanitarian zone” but struck nearly 100 times by January 2025. Travelers must also cross the militarized Netzarim Corridor, which splits Gaza in two. With fuel shortages worsening, many may be forced to...