Israel’s defence minister says ‘Gaza is burning’ after heavy strikes overnight

Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz declared that “Gaza is burning” as the Israeli military began a ground offensive targeting Gaza City on Tuesday, slowly squeezing in on the Palestinian territory’s largest city.

Residents still in the city were warned they must leave and head south.

The push marks yet another escalation in the Israel-Hamas conflict. While the military would not offer a timeline for the offensive, Israeli media outlets suggested it could take months.

Mr Katz said “Gaza is burning” while independent experts commissioned by the United Nations’ Human Rights Council announced that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza, joining a rising international chorus of such accusations.

Israel fiercely rejected the claim, calling the experts’ report “distorted and false”.

The European Union urged Israel on Tuesday to halt its ground invasion of northern Gaza as the 27-nation bloc seems poised to increase pressure on the country.

“Military intervention will lead to more destruction, more death and more displacements,” said Anouar El Anouni, a spokesperson for the European Commission.

“This will also aggravate the already catastrophic humanitarian situation and also and dangerous the lives of hostages.”

On Wednesday, the EU’s top diplomat Kaja Kallas will present to national representatives proposals to ratchet up pressure on Israel over its military campaign in Gaza.

Last week, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said she will seek approval from EU nations for new sanctions against far-right Israeli extremists and a partial suspension of a trade agreement with Israel.

She also said she will freeze millions of euros given by the EU’s executive branch to Israel, which would not require the approval of all member countries.

The British government called Israel’s new offensive in Gaza “utterly reckless and appalling”.

Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper wrote on X that the assault on Gaza City “will only bring more bloodshed, kill more innocent civilians & endanger the remaining hostages”.

She added: “We need an immediate ceasefire, all hostages released, unrestricted humanitarian aid and a path to lasting peace.”

Meanwhile, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio left Israel and then made a brief stop in the energy-rich nation of Qatar where he met its ruling emir whose country is still incensed over Israel’s strike last week that killed five Hamas members and a local security official.

Arab and Muslim nations denounced the strike at a summit on Monday but stopped short of any major action targeting Israel, highlighting the challenge of diplomatically pressuring any change in Israel’s conduct.

Egypt, however, escalated its language against Israel, referring to it as the “enemy” for the first time in years. Qatar and Egypt have been key negotiators in the war.

“We have a very short window of time in which a deal can happen,” Mr Rubio said. “It’s a key moment, an important moment.”

Mr Rubio said “a negotiated settlement” still remains the best option while acknowledging the dangers an intensified military campaign posed to Gaza.

“The only thing worse than a war is a protracted one that goes on forever and ever,” Mr Rubio said.

“At some point, this has to end. At some point, Hamas has to be defanged, and we hope it can happen through a negotiation. But I think time, unfortunately, is running out.”

Mr Rubio “thanked Qatar for its efforts to end the war in Gaza and bring all hostages home”, a statement from his office said.

Mr Rubio “reiterated America’s strong support for Qatar’s security and sovereignty and discussed our shared commitment to a safer, more stable region”.

Mr Katz had signalled earlier in the day the operation in Gaza City had begun.

“Gaza is burning,” he said. “We will not relent and we will not go back – until the completion of the mission.”

An Israeli military official, speaking on condition of anonymity in line with military guidelines, said that the “main phase” of the Gaza City operation had begun, with troops moving in from the city’s outskirts toward its centre.

Airstrikes have pounded Gaza City for some time in the lead-up to the operation, knocking down towers in the city.

The official said the Israeli military believes there are approximately 2,000 to 3,000 Hamas militants left in Gaza City, as well as tunnels used by the militant group.

The military estimates 350,000 people have left Gaza City – saying it was about one-third of the city’s population before the new ground offensive started.

That contradicted a UN estimate issued on Monday that more than 220,000 Palestinians have fled northern Gaza over the past month, after the Israeli military warned that all residents should leave Gaza City ahead of the operation.

An estimated one million Palestinians were living in the region around Gaza City before the evacuation warnings.

Long lines of traffic stretched down Gaza’s coastal road Tuesday as the offensive began, with vehicles loaded down with mattresses and people’s belongings and others fleeing on foot.

By the end of the current operation, an Israeli military graphic suggested its troops hope to control all of the Gaza Strip except for a large swathe along the coast.

Palestinian residents reported heavy strikes across Gaza City on Tuesday morning.

By noon, the city’s Shifa Hospital had received the bodies of 34 people killed in the strikes, said Dr Rami Mhanna, a hospital official. Dozens of wounded had also come into the facility, he said.

“A very tough night in Gaza,” Dr Mohamed Abu Selmiyah, the hospital’s director, told The Associated Press. “The bombing did not stop for a single moment.”

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.”

The Israeli military did not respond to immediate requests for comment on the strikes but in the past has accused Hamas of building military infrastructure inside civilian areas, especially in Gaza City.

Israel also bombed Yemen’s port city of Hodeida in response to drone and missile fire from Iran-backed Houthi rebels, who say they are acting in solidarity with the Palestinians.

Overnight, families of the hostages still being held in Gaza gathered outside of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s residence, pleading with him to stop the Gaza City operation.

Some pitched tents and slept outside his home in protest.

“I have one interest: for this country to wake up and bring back my child along with 47 other hostages, both living and deceased, and to bring our soldiers home,” Einav Zangauker, whose son Matan is being held in Gaza, shouted outside Mr Netanyahu’s residence.

“If he stops at nothing and sends our precious, brave, heroic soldiers to fight while our hostages are being used as human shields, he is not a worthy prime minister.”

Israel believes around 20 of the 48 hostages still held by the militants in Gaza, including Matan, are alive. Hamas has said it will free remaining hostages only in return for Palestinian prisoners, a lasting ceasefire and an Israeli withdrawal from Gaza.

Both Mr Netanyahu and Mr Rubio said on Monday the only way to end the conflict in Gaza is through the elimination of Hamas and the release of the remaining 48 hostages, setting aside calls for an interim ceasefire in favour of an immediate end to the conflict.

Hamas has said it will only free the remaining hostages in return for Palestinian prisoners, a lasting ceasefire and an Israeli withdrawal from Gaza.

The war in Gaza began when Hamas-led militants stormed into southern Israel on October 7 2023, killing around 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducting 251.

Most of the hostages have since been released in ceasefires brokered in part by Qatar or other deals.

Israel’s retaliatory offensive has killed at least 64,900 Palestinians, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, which does not say how many were civilians or combatants.

The ministry, which is part of the Hamas-run government and staffed by medical professionals, says women and children make up around half the dead.