Israel launches expanded Gaza offensive aimed at defeating Hamas

Israel launches expanded Gaza offensive aimed at defeating Hamas

Israel launched an intensified offensive in Gaza on Saturday aimed at "the defeat of Hamas", with rescuers in the Palestinian territory reporting at least 32 killed by new Israeli strikes.

The stepped-up campaign came amid growing international concern over worsening humanitarian conditions in Gaza, where an Israeli aid blockade continues to restrict aid.

One of the territory's last functioning hospitals said it could no longer treat seriously wounded patients due to shortages and damage from a nearby attack.

The escalation also came as Hamas said a new round of indirect negotiations with Israel "without any preconditions" aimed at ending the war had started in Doha.

Israel's military said the operation marked "the expansion of the battle in the Gaza Strip, with the goal of achieving all the war's objectives, including the release of the abducted and the defeat of Hamas".

It said it had "launched extensive strikes and transferred forces to seize control of areas within the Gaza Strip".

UN chief Antonio Guterres, addressing an Arab League summit in Baghdad, said he was "alarmed" at the expansion and called for "a permanent ceasefire, now".

The summit's final statement urged the international community "to exert pressure to end the bloodshed and ensure that urgent humanitarian aid can enter without obstacles".

Gaza civil defence agency said at least 32 deaths had been recorded Saturday, more than half of them women and children.

One attack on a home in the central city of Deir el-Balah killed nine people, including a seven-month-old child, spokesman Mahmud Bassal told AFP.

In the same city, displaced Gazans sifted through belongings, some bloodstained, for whatever could be salvaged after overnight strikes hit their tents.

"We woke up at half past two in the morning to the sound of a loud explosion that shook the entire area," said Umm Fadi Quzaat.

"There was blood and body parts everywhere."

Italy urged Israel to stop the strikes, with Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani saying: "Enough with the attacks".

Germany said it was "deeply concerned" about the offensive.

Israel resumed its Gaza operations on March 18, ending a two-month truce in the war triggered by Hamas's October 2023 attack.

Thousands protested in London on Saturday against the war.

"The situation in Gaza is worsening and worsening," said one demonstrator, who gave his name as Laurens.

"More and more organisations and agencies are talking about genocidal violence, and I think it's important that we're here to show that we don't agree with Israel's government policies."

- Doha talks -

Senior Hamas official Taher al-Nunu said Saturday new talks on ending the war had begun in Doha "without any preconditions from either side".

"Hamas will present its viewpoint on all issues, especially ending the war, (Israel's) withdrawal and prisoner exchange," he added.

Previous negotiations failed to secure a breakthrough, but the talks have been ongoing.

The Israeli defence minister, Israel Katz, said the renewed offensive -- dubbed "Operation Gideon's Chariots" -- brought Hamas back to the table for "negotiations on a hostage deal".

Both sides have insisted on certain conditions, with Hamas saying disarmament was a red line and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu unwilling to agree to a deal that would leave the group intact.

At the Arab League summit, Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas called on leaders to adopt a Palestinian Authority-led plan to end the war under which "Hamas would relinquish its control" of Gaza and "hand over its weapons" to the PA.

The plan would also involve a permanent ceasefire, the release of hostages, humanitarian aid entering Gaza and Israel's withdrawal from the Strip, he said, as well as "a political process" for implementing a two-state solution.

- 'Catastrophic' -

Israel has faced increasing pressure to lift its aid blockade, as UN agencies warn of critical shortages of food, clean water, fuel and medicines.

Marwan Sultan, director of the Indonesian Hospital in northern Gaza, said the situation was "catastrophic after its surroundings were targeted again this morning".

The hospital was "unable to receive any more critical cases" amid "a severe shortage" of blood units, medicine and supplies, he said.

Hamas's October 7, 2023 attack resulted in the deaths of 1,218 people on the Israeli side, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official figures.

Of the 251 hostages taken during the attack, 57 remain in Gaza, including 34 the military says are dead.

The health ministry in the Hamas-run territory said 3,131 people have been killed since Israel resumed strikes on March 18, taking the war's overall toll to 53,272.

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Originally published as Israel launches expanded Gaza offensive aimed at defeating Hamas