Israel has already begun the initial stages of its offensive on Gaza City with the IDF launching attacks on the outskirts of the region with ‘great force’ while thousands of Palestinians flee south.
It comes after the Israeli military declared Gaza City ‘a dangerous combat zone’ on Friday, as it prepared to conquer the Palestinian territory’s largest city after almost two years of war.
‘We are not waiting. We have begun preliminary operations and the initial stages of the attack on Gaza City, and we are currently operating with great force on the outskirts of the city,’ the IDF’s Arabic-language spokesman, Col. Avichay Adraee said.
‘We will intensify our strikes and will not hesitate until we bring back all the hostages and dismantle Hamas militarily and politically,’ he wrote on X.
The IDF had been implementing military pauses in the Strip in recent weeks to facilitate the distribution of essential humanitarian supplies such as food and medicine.
The military said it would continue the pauses across the enclave with the exception of Gaza City – the territory’s most populous region where roughly half of Gaza’s 2.1 million residents are taking shelter.
‘Starting today (Friday), at 10:00 (07:00 GMT), the local tactical pause in military activity will not apply to the area of Gaza City, which constitutes a dangerous combat zone,’ the military said in a statement, referring the daily pauses in certain areas aimed at facilitating aid distribution.
On Wednesday, the IDF released a warning to the city’s residents to evacuate before Israel‘s planned operation to take full control.
The Israeli military declared Gaza City ‘a dangerous combat zone’ on Friday, as it prepared to conquer the Palestinian territory’s largest city
Smoke billowing during an Israeli strike on the besieged Palestinian territory, on August 29, 2025
People try to get rice from a charity kitchen providing food for free in the west of Gaza City, on August 28, 2025
‘Evacuating Gaza City is inevitable,’ Adraee said on X.
He hit back at the ‘false rumours’ that there was not enough space in the south of the Strip to accommodate the displaced population, and posted a map showing 19 zones to which people in Gaza City are to be relocated: in refugee camps in the central Strip, and in the Muwasi area of dunes in the south.
But Israeli newspaper Haaretz reported that upon closer inspection of the map, several of these areas have been designated by the military as places where Gazans ‘would be in danger’.
Tens of thousands of furious Israelis have been taking to the streets to protest against Benjamin Netanyahu’s plan to expand his military operation in Gaza.
Demonstrators blocked major highways, set fire to roads, and protested outside ministers’ homes in a national day of action on Tuesday – urging the government to stop the war and reach a deal for the release of the 50 hostages still held by Hamas.
Leading humanitarian groups have warned that the IDF’s plan to takeover Gaza City would prove catastrophic to the civilian population.
Repeating his call for an immediate ceasefire, United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warned of ‘the massive death and destruction that a military operation against Gaza City would inevitably cause’.
Meanwhile, the Red Cross called the expanded offensive aimed at targetting the remaining Hamas strongholds ‘intolerable’.
‘The intensification of hostilities in Gaza means more killing, more displacement, more destruction and more panic,’ Christian Cardon, the chief spokesperson for the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), said.
‘Gaza is a closed space from which nobody can escape… and where access to healthcare, food and safe water is dwindling. Meanwhile, the security of humanitarians is getting worse by the hour.’
On August 18, Hamas accepted a new proposal from Qatari and Egyptian mediators for a 60-day ceasefire, which would see the release of half of the remaining hostages in Gaza.
An activist blocks a highway during a protest demanding the immediate release of hostages held by Hamas and calling for the Israeli government to reverse its decision to take over Gaza City on Tuesday, August 26, 2025
An aerial view shows thousands of Israelis march through Rehinim Square and Shaul HaMelech Boulevard in Tel Aviv, demanding an end to the war and an agreement for the release of Israeli hostages in Gaza, on August 26, 2025
Leading humanitarian groups have warned that the IDF’s plan to takeover Gaza City would prove catastrophic to the civilian population
The Red Cross called the expanded offensive aimed at targetting the remaining Hamas strongholds ‘intolerable’
Palestinians are forced to flee and take to the roads due to the Israeli army’s intense attacks on the northern Gaza Strip on August 28, 2025
Palestinians gather at the scene to inspect the aftermath of the Israeli attack in Gaza City on August 29, 2025
It is understood that Netanyahu rejected the deal, saying days later that he had issued instructions for negotiations to begin on the release of all hostages held in Gaza and an end to war – but only ‘on terms acceptable to Israel’.
After 22 months of war, Israel believes only 22 of the remaining 50 hostages are alive.
This is a developing story. More to follow.
