Israel widens Gaza offensive as Trump pushes for ceasefire

Israel's military said Tuesday that it had expanded its operations in Gaza, where residents reported fierce gunfire and shelling days before a planned trip to Washington by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

The intensified operations came after days of mounting calls for a ceasefire, with U.S. President Donald Trump – whom Netanyahu is scheduled to meet next week – among those urging Israel to strike a new deal to halt the war and bring home the hostages still held in Gaza.

Trump said on Tuesday that Israel had agreed "to the necessary conditions to finalize" a 60-day ceasefire in Gaza, during which efforts will be made to end the U.S. ally's war in the Palestinian enclave.

"Israel has agreed to the necessary conditions to finalize the 60 Day CEASEFIRE, during which time we will work with all parties to end the War," Trump said on social media.

"The Qataris and Egyptians, who have worked very hard to help bring Peace, will deliver this final proposal. I hope, for the good of the Middle East, that Hamas takes this Deal, because it will not get better — IT WILL ONLY GET WORSE," he added.

Israel's military campaign in the Gaza Strip has raged on unabated, however, with the enclave's civil defense agency reporting Israeli forces killed at least 26 people on Tuesday.

In response to reports of deadly strikes in the north and south of the territory, the Israeli army told AFP it was "operating to dismantle Hamas military capabilities."

Separately, it said Tuesday morning that in recent days it had "expanded its operations to additional areas within the Gaza Strip, eliminating dozens of terrorists and dismantling hundreds of terror infrastructure sites both above and below ground."

Aid seekers killed

The Red Cross warned that Gaza's few functioning medical facilities were overwhelmed, with nearly all public hospitals "shut down or gutted by months of hostilities and restrictions" on supplies.

"The International Committee of the Red Cross is deeply alarmed by the intensifying hostilities in Gaza City and Jabaliya, which have reportedly caused dozens of deaths and injuries among civilians over the past 36 hours," it said in a statement.

Gaza's civil defense service said 16 people were killed near aid distribution sites in central and southern Gaza on Tuesday, in the latest in a spate of deadly attacks on those seeking food, with 10 others killed in other Israeli operations.

Commenting on the incidents, the Israeli military told AFP its forces "fired warning shots to distance suspects who approached the troops," adding it was not aware of any injuries but would review the incidents.

Referring to an incident in Rafah, it claimed the shots were fired "hundreds of meters away from the aid distribution site," which was "not operating."

'Starve or risk being shot'

Since the latest Israeli evacuation orders were issued for northern regions of the strip on Sunday, at least 1,500 families have been displaced, said the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), quoting its partners on the ground.

Five school buildings sheltering displaced families in northern Gaza were reportedly hit, with deaths and injuries. Initial assessments by OCHA partners indicate that many families who fled from the schools after the attack have returned to northern Gaza, mainly due to the lack of alternatives and limited shelter space elsewhere, said the office.

On its ReliefWeb, OCHA said 169 non-governmental organizations are calling for immediate action to end the deadly Israeli-U.S. militarized distribution scheme known as the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation.

They signed a statement asking for the Israeli-approved plan to revert to the existing UN-led coordination mechanism and lift the Israeli government's blockade on aid and commercial supplies.

They alleged that 400 UN-led aid distribution points operating during the temporary ceasefire across Gaza were replaced by just four military-controlled, U.S.-operated distribution sites, forcing 2 million people into overcrowded, militarized zones where they face daily gunfire and mass casualties while trying to access food and are denied other life-saving supplies.

"Palestinians in Gaza face an impossible choice: starve or risk being shot while trying desperately to reach food to feed their families," the ReliefWeb appeal said. "The weeks following the launch of the Israeli distribution scheme have been some of the deadliest and most violent since October 2023."

OCHA said that in less than four weeks, more than 500 Palestinians were killed and almost 4,000 injured just trying to access or distribute food. Israeli forces and armed groups, some reportedly operating with backing from Israeli authorities, routinely open fire on desperate civilians risking everything just to survive.

"The humanitarian system is being deliberately and systematically dismantled by the government of Israel's blockade and restrictions, a blockade now being used to justify shutting down nearly all other aid operations in favor of a deadly, military-controlled alternative that neither protects civilians nor meets basic needs," said the statement.

OCHA said that experienced humanitarian actors remain ready to deliver life-saving assistance on a large scale. Yet more than 100 days since Israeli authorities reimposed a near-total blockade on aid and commercial goods, Gaza's humanitarian condition is collapsing faster than at any point in the past 20 months.

(With input from agencies)