Israeli planes and tanks struck the eastern and northern outskirts of Gaza City overnight Saturday into Sunday, destroying homes and buildings in what residents described as one of the heaviest bombardments in weeks. The attacks come as Israeli leaders reaffirm plans to launch a full-scale offensive on the city, which they describe as Hamas’s last stronghold.
Witnesses reported continuous explosions in the Zeitoun and Shejaia districts, with tanks shelling houses and roads in the Sabra neighborhood. Several buildings were also demolished in Jabalia, north of Gaza City, where Israeli forces said they had resumed combat operations to dismantle militant tunnels and prevent Hamas from re-establishing control.
The strikes triggered panic among civilians, with some families fleeing in the night. Others, unable or unwilling to leave, said they would rather stay at home despite the danger. “We are not leaving, let them bomb us at home,” said Aya, 31, who lives with her family of eight. “We are hungry, afraid, and don’t have money.”
Israel’s Defense Minister Israel Katz vowed Sunday to press forward with the planned Gaza City offensive, despite growing international alarm over famine in the enclave and mounting opposition at home. Katz warned that the city would be “razed” unless Hamas agreed to end the war on Israel’s terms and release all hostages.
Hamas condemned the Israeli plan, saying it proved that Israel was not serious about ceasefire efforts. The group insisted that only a truce could secure the release of hostages, placing responsibility for their fate on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Mediators Egypt and Qatar are pushing a proposal for a 60-day ceasefire that would include the release of 10 living hostages and 18 bodies in exchange for about 200 long-serving Palestinian prisoners. A longer-term deal would then be negotiated, but Netanyahu has maintained that Israel will only accept terms that ensure its security.
The humanitarian situation in Gaza City continues to deteriorate. Roughly half of the enclave’s two million residents remain in the city, with thousands more displaced in recent days. A global hunger monitor declared the area to be officially in famine last week, a finding Israel disputes.
The Gaza health ministry reported Sunday that eight more people had died from malnutrition and starvation, bringing the total to 289 deaths, including 115 children, since the conflict began.
The war erupted on October 7, 2023, when Hamas-led militants attacked southern Israel, killing around 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducting 251 hostages.
Since then, Israel’s military campaign has killed at least 62,000 Palestinians, mostly civilians, according to the Gaza health ministry, and displaced nearly the entire population of the strip.
Written By Rodney Mbua
