PALESTINE – The Israeli forces are set to begin ground offensive in Gaza City, in an attempt aimed at displacing Palestinians in order to take control of the city.
“We have begun an intensive operation in Gaza City,” Netanyahu said on Tuesday while appearing for his criminal trial in Tel Aviv.
His announcement coincided with a violent Israeli assault on Gaza, where Palestinians endured a night of heavy air and artillery strikes.
Local sources reported 35 people were killed, and others were injured or remain missing, amid explosions from explosive drones targeting homes and residential buildings northwest of the city.
Netanyahu appeared again in the Tel Aviv District Court Tuesday morning to respond to corruption charges against him. He faces accusations of bribery, fraud, and breach of trust across three separate corruption cases.
Israeli Forces Warn of Intensive Strikes
The Israeli military on Tuesday threatened Gaza City residents with more intense strikes as part of its plan to occupy the city and forcibly displace them.
“The Israeli army has begun destroying Hamas infrastructure in Gaza City,” army spokesperson Avichay Adraee said in a post on the US social media company X, directly threatening Gazans with heavy strikes to force them to flee the city.
“Gaza City is a dangerous combat zone. Remaining in the area puts you in danger,” he added, urging residents to evacuate south via Al-Rashid Street “as quickly as possible, by vehicle or on foot,” toward designated areas in southern Gaza.
He claimed that more than 40% of the city’s population had already relocated.
Israel’s Channel 12 reported Tuesday that the military dropped leaflets over Gaza, warning residents to evacuate.
In recent weeks, the Israeli military has increasingly targeted towers and residential buildings in Gaza, a policy Palestinian officials say is intended to force civilians to flee northwestern areas of the city to the southern Gaza Strip.
The escalation follows the Israeli government’s approval of a plan on Aug. 8, proposed by Netanyahu, to gradually reoccupy Gaza, beginning with Gaza City.
Israeli Broadcaster Denies Armored Vehicles’ Entry in the City
Israel’s public broadcaster KAN dismissed reports Tuesday that tanks and armored vehicles had rolled into the heart of Gaza City.
The denial came after several media outlets claimed Israeli forces had pushed inside the city. CNN reported that a ground incursion was underway, but Anadolu’s correspondent in Gaza confirmed no such entry had taken place.
The false reports are part of a psychological campaign designed to sow fear among Palestinians and drive them to flee south ahead of a potential wider ground offensive.
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