19 h. ago Israeli military says it controls nearly half of Gaza City in push for takeover

Israel controls 40 per cent of Gaza City, a military spokesperson said on Thursday, as its bombardment forced more Palestinians from their homes there, while thousands of residents defied Israeli orders to leave, remaining behind in the ruins in the path of Israel’s latest advance. Gaza health authorities said Israeli fire across the enclave had killed at least 53 people on Thursday, mostly in Gaza City, where Israeli forces have advanced through the outer suburbs and were a few kilometres from...

Events

45 h. ago ‘A million people’ expected to flee as Israel prepares to seize Gaza City

Israel estimates that its imminent offensive on Gaza City would displace one million Palestinians, a senior military official said on Wednesday, as Gaza’s civil defence reported dozens killed across the territory. In Jerusalem, meanwhile, hundreds of Israeli protesters took to the streets to call for a truce and hostage release deal after nearly two years of war. Israel’s military has been building up its forces for the planned operation to seize Gaza City, the Palestinian territory’s largest...

Politics

3 d. ago Thousands of reservists report for duty as Israel begins new Gaza offensive

Tens of thousands of reservists started to report for duty on Tuesday ahead of a new Israeli offensive in Gaza City, which Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu wants to speed up, despite warnings from senior ranks. Israeli Army Radio said that some 40,000 would report for duty on Tuesday for the Gaza City offensive, as the military prepares logistically for their intake. Israel’s security cabinet, chaired by Netanyahu, approved a plan last month to expand the campaign in Gaza with the aim of taking...

Politics

4 d. ago Gazans despair: ‘stay and die, or leave towards nowhere’, as Israel pushes deeper

Israel pushed tanks deeper into Gaza City and detonated explosives-laden vehicles in one suburb as air strikes killed at least 19 people on Monday, Palestinian officials and witnesses said. The reports came as the president of the world’s leading genocide scholars’ association said it had passed a resolution stating the legal criteria have been met to establish that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza. There was no immediate response from Israel on the accounts of the Gaza City offensive or on...

Events

5 d. ago Flotilla leaves Barcelona in biggest attempt yet to break Israel’s Gaza blockade

A flotilla of ships departed from Barcelona to Gaza on Sunday with humanitarian aid and activists on board in the largest attempt yet to break the long Israeli blockade of the Palestinian territory by sea. This comes as Israel has stepped up its offensive on Gaza City, limiting the deliveries of food and basic supplies in the north of the Palestinian territory. Food experts warned earlier this month that the city was in famine and that half a million people across the strip were facing...

Politics

5 d. ago Flotilla leaves Barcelona in biggest attempt yet to break blockade of Gaza

A flotilla of ships departed from Barcelona to Gaza on Sunday with humanitarian aid and activists on board in the largest attempt yet to break the long Israeli blockade of the Palestinian territory by sea. This comes as Israel has stepped up its offensive on Gaza City, limiting the deliveries of food and basic supplies in the north of the Palestinian territory. Food experts warned earlier this month that the city was in famine and that half a million people across the strip were facing...

Politics

6 d. ago Israel to slow or stop aid into parts of Gaza soon as offensive expands

Israel will soon slow or halt humanitarian aid into parts of northern Gaza as it expands its offensive attempting to cripple Hamas, an official said on Saturday. The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to speak to the media, said that Israel would stop airdrops over Gaza City in the coming days and reduce the arrival of aid trucks into the northern part of the strip as it prepared to evacuate hundreds of thousands of residents south. Israel on Friday...

Politics

7 d. ago Israel declares Gaza City ‘combat zone’, as bodies of 2 hostages recovered

Israel on Friday declared Gaza’s largest city a dangerous combat zone and said it was in the ″initial stages″ of a planned offensive that has drawn international condemnation. Israel’s military said it suspended midday pauses in fighting, which had allowed food and aid supplies to enter from 10am to 8pm, while also reporting it had recovered the bodies of two hostages and vowed its military offensive would return more. The shift comes weeks after Israel first announced plans to widen its...

Events

7 d. ago UN food agency chief says women and children are starving in war

The head of the UN food agency said on Thursday that it was “very evident” during her visit to Gaza this week that there was not enough food in the Palestinian territory and that she spoke with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu about the urgent need for more aid. The world’s leading authority on food crises said last week the Gaza Strip’s largest city was gripped by famine, and that it was likely to spread across the territory without a ceasefire and an end to restrictions on...

Society

1 week ago 4 Palestinians killed while seeking aid near Gaza City, witnesses say

Israeli forces shot dead four Palestinian aid-seekers travelling on Sunday through a military zone south of Gaza City that is regularly used to reach a food distribution point, a hospital and witnesses said. Gaza City is in famine after 22 months of war, while Israel’s military moves ahead with a planned offensive to seize the city, perhaps within days. Israel’s defence minister has warned that the city of hundreds of thousands of people could be destroyed. Al-Awda Hospital and two witnesses...

Events

2 w. ago Israel vows to destroy Gaza City if Hamas doesn’t disarm and release hostages

Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz vowed on Friday to destroy Gaza City if Hamas did not agree to disarm, release all remaining hostages in the territory and end the war on Israel’s terms. “Soon, the gates of hell will open upon the heads of Hamas’s murderers and rapists in Gaza – until they agree to Israel’s conditions for ending the war, primarily the release of all hostages and their disarmament,” the minister posted on social media. “If they do not agree, Gaza, the capital of Hamas, will...

Politics

2 w. ago UN declares famine in Gaza, blames Israel, as 500,000 face catastrophic hunger

The United Nations on Friday officially declared a famine in Gaza, the first in the Middle East, with its experts saying 500,000 people were facing “catastrophic” hunger. UN aid chief Tom Fletcher said the famine was entirely preventable, saying food could not get through to the Palestinian territory “because of systematic obstruction by Israel”. But Israel’s foreign ministry immediately hit back, saying “there is no famine in Gaza”. In a statement, it slammed the report by the Rome-based IPC...

Politics

2 w. ago In major escalation, Israel begins new Gaza City offensive, amid ceasefire calls

Israel hammered Gaza City and its outskirts overnight, residents said on Thursday, after the defence ministry approved an expanded offensive to target the remaining Hamas strongholds in the strip. The newly approved plan authorises the call-up of roughly 60,000 reservists, deepening fears the campaign will worsen the already catastrophic humanitarian crisis in the Palestinian territory. “We are not waiting. We have begun the preliminary actions, and already now, IDF (army) troops are holding the...

Politics

2 w. ago Israel mobilises 60,000 reservists to seize Gaza City, piling pressure on Hamas

Israel’s defence minister has approved a plan for the conquest of Gaza City and authorised the call-up of around 60,000 reservists to carry it out, his ministry confirmed on Wednesday. Defence Minister Israel Katz’s move piled pressure on Hamas as mediators pushing for a ceasefire in the nearly two-year war in Gaza awaited an official Israeli response on their latest proposal. While mediator Qatar had expressed guarded optimism over the latest proposal, a senior Israeli official said the...

Politics

2 w. ago Ahead of Israeli offensive, some Palestinians are leaving Gaza City

Fearing an Israeli onslaught could come soon, some Palestinian families began leaving eastern areas of Gaza City, now under constant Israeli bombardment, for points to the west and some explored evacuating further south. Israel’s plan to seize control of Gaza City has stirred alarm abroad and at home where tens of thousands of Israelis held some of the largest protests seen since the war began, urging a deal to end the fighting and free the remaining 50 hostages held by Palestinian militants in...

Politics

2 w. ago Thousands of Palestinians leave Gaza City amid fears of Israeli offensive

Fearing an imminent Israeli ground offensive, thousands of Palestinians have left their homes in eastern areas of Gaza City, now under constant Israeli bombardment, for points to the west and south of the shattered territory. Israel’s plan to seize control of Gaza City has stirred alarm abroad and at home where tens of thousands of Israelis held some of the largest protests seen since the war began, urging a deal to end the fighting and free the remaining 50 hostages held by Palestinian...

Politics

3 w. ago Trump mulls new tariffs, China builds space debris device: SCMP daily highlights

Catch up on some of SCMP’s biggest China stories of the day. If you would like to see more of our reporting, please consider subscribing. 1. Trump may hit China with punitive tariffs over purchases of Russian oil US Vice-President J.D. Vance said that President Donald Trump is “thinking” about slapping new tariffs on imports from China in response to the country’s purchases of Russian oil. 2. China condemns Israel’s Gaza City takeover plan, urges 2-state solution China has condemned Israel’s...

Politics

4 w. ago Beijing expresses ‘serious concern’ over Israel’s plan to take control of Gaza City

Beijing expresses ‘serious concern’ over Israel’s plan to take control of Gaza City  The Times of Israel

Politics