Israel intensifies Gaza offensive as U.S. urges protecting civilians

Israeli forces pushed deep into the ruins of Gaza's northern edge on Monday to recapture an area from Hamas militants, while tanks and troops pushed across a highway into the southern city of Rafah, leaving Palestinian civilians scrambling to find safety.

Commando and infantry forces attacked Jabalia and Zeitoun in northern Gaza from the ground as the air force carried out strikes from above. The troops were engaged in "close-range battles," the Israeli army said in a statement, adding that "many underground infrastructures and fighting spaces in the area were destroyed."

The military said it was conducting a "limited" operation against militant infrastructure in Rafah, while the United Nations reported that over 300,000 Palestinians have fled Rafah since the weekend as Israeli soldiers advanced further into the city.

The assault on Rafah has caused one of the biggest splits in decades between Israel and its main ally, the U.S., which paused some deliveries of weapons.

U.S. President Joe Biden has faced heavy criticism from his own supporters domestically for his support of Israel. Some of those critics have accused Israel of committing genocide, a claim dismissed by the White House and Israel.

Washington says Israel must not assault Rafah without a plan to protect civilians, which it has yet to see.

Noting Israel's aim of wiping out Hamas, U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell on Monday said Washington did not think that goal of total victory was "likely or possible."

Also on Monday, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant's office said he had briefed U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken on the "precise operation" in the Rafah area.

The U.S. State Department said Blinken spoke with Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry on Monday and reaffirmed that Washington does not support a major military ground operation by Israel in Rafah.

Meanwhile, Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah said on Monday that his group will continue its battle against the Israeli forces in support of Gaza, local media reported.

Questions are also being raised within the Israeli military over the operation's goal and Gaza's future. 

Herzi Halevi, chief of staff of the Israel Defense Forces, criticized Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for lacking a "day-after strategy" during a weekend security meeting. Noting the latest attacks in northern Gaza, Halevi said that unless there is a move to establish a government other than Hamas in the region, Israel would be forced to repeat attacks elsewhere.

The Palestinian death toll in the Gaza Strip has climbed to 35,091, according to health authorities in Gaza, while hundreds of thousands of people continue to flee.

Gaza's health authority has called for international pressure to reopen access via the southern border to allow in aid, medical supplies and fuel to power generators and ambulances.

"The wounded and sick suffer a slow death because there is no treatment and supplies, and they cannot travel," it said.

A foreign UN security staff member was killed on Monday when a UN-marked vehicle travelling to a hospital in Rafah was struck – the first international UN fatality in the Gaza conflict, a UN spokesperson said, bringing the total death toll of UN personnel to around 190.

(With input from agencies)