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Israel launched strikes on Gaza City overnight as it moved forward with a new offensive in the Palestinian enclave despite international condemnation and mounting domestic protests.
Explosions rocked neighborhoods in the city on Thursday, after Israel said its military had entered the first stages of a planned assault that includes calling up 60,000 reservists. The operation has sent civilians fleeing once again, intensifying fears about the starvation crisis unfolding in the territory.
Israel’s security cabinet has approved a plan proposed by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for the military to “take control” of Gaza City, his office said in a statement Friday.
Under the plan to “defeat” Hamas in the Gaza Strip, the Israeli army “will prepare to take control of Gaza City while distributing humanitarian assistance to the civilian population outside combat zones”, the statement said.
Dozens of people have been killed in armed clashes between Sunni Bedouin tribal fighters and Druze militias in southern Syria, according to local media reports.
The violence erupted in the predominantly Druze city in the province of Suweida on Sunday, two days after a Druze merchant was reportedly abducted on the highway to Damascus.
A shaky ceasefire began to take hold between Israel and Iran on Tuesday under pressure from U.S. President Donald Trump, raising hopes for an end to the biggest ever military confrontation between the Middle East arch-foes.
Trump scolded both sides for early violations of the truce he announced at 0500 GMT, but directed especially stinging criticism at Washington’s close ally Israel over the scale of its strikes, telling it to “calm down now”.
Iran launched a limited missile attack Monday on a U.S. military base in Qatar, retaliating for the American bombing of its nuclear sites but indicating it was prepared to step back from escalating tensions in the volatile region. U.S. officials reported no casualties.
Qatar condemned the attack on Al Udeid Air Base attack, but said it successfully intercepted the short- and medium-range ballistic missiles.
