Israel's bombing of Gaza City continues unabated as it carries out an offensive on the suburbs of Gaza City for weeks after Netanyahu ordered his military to capture it. The city and its surrounding region are currently experiencing a famine, the UN says, after Israel severely restricted aid flows. Israel orders Gaza evacuation as it prepares for a major attack. On September 9, 2025, Israel ordered residents of Gaza City out, after it said it was about to obliterate the area in an assault to wipe out Hamas. Residents of the city, home to a million Palestinians before the war, have been expecting an onslaught for weeks, since the Israeli government devised a plan to deal Hamas a fatal blow in what it says are the militant group's last strongholds.

Most Gazans have already been displaced several times since the war started1 in October 2023. The entire population has been internally displaced, much of the territory lies in ruins, and a hunger crisis has grown far worse in recent months2.

The Israeli military has instructed residents in Gaza City to move to a designated "humanitarian zone" in the already overcrowded Al-Mawasi area along the coast in the south, where thousands of Palestinians have already been sheltering in tents. Israel has also regularly bombed the south. Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz said on September 8, 2025, the military would unleash a ''mighty hurricane" that would destroy Gaza if Hamas did not free the last hostages it holds and surrender.

Israel has called up tens of thousands of reservists for a ground operation. Netanyahu said Israeli forces were organizing and assembling in Gaza City. Israeli forces have been running on Gaza City's outskirts since last month, and the military said it was in control of 40% of the city already. Launching the new Israeli assault could complicate ceasefire efforts to end the two-year war. Hopes had been pinned on mediation efforts to reach a ceasefire that would avert Israel's plan. Netanyahu says Israel has no choice but to complete the job and defeat Hamas, given that the militant group has refused to lay down its arms. Hamas says it will not disarm unless an independent Palestinian state is set up and will not free all hostages without an agreement ending the war. The proposed deal includes a pause in hostilities, increased humanitarian aid, and negotiations on the release of captives.

Launching the new Israeli assault could complicate ceasefire efforts to end the nearly two-year war3. It was hoped that mediation efforts to reach a ceasefire would avert Israel's plan. The health ministry in Gaza appealed to the international community to protect Gaza City's hospitals, warning of "a humanitarian catastrophe that threatens the lives of thousands of patients and wounded individuals"4.

About 87 people were killed and more than 400 suffered injuries in Israeli attacks on September 6. Another 21 people, mostly in Gaza City, have been killed since September 7. The intensified assault threatens to displace hundreds of thousands of Palestinians sheltering there from two years of fighting. Before the war, around a million people, half of Gaza's population, lived in the city5.

On September 9, the Israeli army says6 it has carried out an assassination attempt on top Hamas leaders in Qatar’s capital, Doha, where multiple explosions have been heard. Senior Hamas member Suhail al-Hindi tells Al Jazeera that the group’s leadership survived the attack, which another source said happened as a negotiating team was discussing a Gaza ceasefire proposal put forward by the United States. Qatar condemns the “cowardly” Israeli attack, calling it a flagrant violation of international law.

On September 9, 2025, at least 39 people, including several aid seekers, were killed by Israeli forces across the Gaza Strip, medical sources say. Israel’s war on Gaza has killed at least 64,605 people and wounded 163,319 since October 2023. Thousands more are believed to be under the rubble. A total of 1,139 people were killed in Israel during the October 7 attacks, and about 200 were taken captive. Since March 2, Israeli authorities have completely closed all Gaza border crossings, pushing the territory’s 2.4 million population into famine. The Israeli army resumed its attacks on the Gaza Strip on March 18 and has since killed 12,059 people and injured 51,278 others, shattering a ceasefire and prisoner exchange agreement that took hold in January7.

There are growing calls within Israel, led by families of hostages and their supporters, to end the war in a diplomatic deal that would secure the release of the remaining 48 captives. Israeli officials believe 20 of the hostages are still alive. Meanwhile, Netanyahu is pushing for an all-or-nothing deal that would see all the hostages released at once and Hamas surrendering. U.S. President Donald Trump said on September 5 that Washington was in "very deep" negotiations with the Palestinian militants. Israeli foreign minister Gideon Saar on September 7 said that the offensive in Gaza could end at once if Hamas released the remaining hostages being held in Gaza and laid down its weapons. "We will be more than happy to reach this objective with political means," he said8.

Since March, when Israel unilaterally broke a ceasefire, at least 11,911 people have been killed and 50,735 wounded. Since famine was declared in Gaza, 109 deaths have been recorded, including those of 23 children9. Earlier, Netanyahu announced Israel's intention to seize the Gaza Strip after indirect talks with Hamas on a ceasefire and hostage release deal broke down in July.

The UN estimates that one million people are still in Gaza City, where it declared a famine last month. It has warned of an imminent "disaster" if the assault goes ahead. Some 367 people have so far died during the war because of malnutrition and starvation10.

On September 7, a UN aid chief warned of famine spreading to new areas. There is a "narrow window" to prevent famine from spreading further in Gaza, he said. He then called on Israel to allow unimpeded aid delivery in the territory. According to a global hunger monitor11, hundreds of thousands of Palestinians are already experiencing or at risk of famine in areas including Gaza City, the enclave's largest urban center, where Israel has launched a new offensive against Hamas12.

Meanwhile, President Trump issued a ‘last warning’ to Hamas to accept the Gaza ceasefire deal. He said, ‘The Israelis have accepted my terms’ and urged the release of hostages to secure a peace agreement. “The Israelis have accepted my Terms. It is time for Hamas to accept as well,” Trump said. “Warned Hamas about the consequences of not accepting. This is my last warning; there will not be another one!” Hamas said in a later statement that it received some ideas from the US side through mediators to reach a ceasefire deal in Gaza. The group said it was discussing with mediators ways to develop those ideas, without giving specifics.

Hamas also reiterated its readiness for negotiations to release all hostages in exchange for a “clear announcement of an end to the war” and the complete withdrawal of Israeli forces from the enclave. Under the deal, Hamas would free all the remaining 48 hostages on the first day of the truce in exchange for thousands of Palestinian prisoners jailed in Israel and negotiate an end to the war during a ceasefire in the enclave13.

Meanwhile, there have been important developments on the international scene. Morbilli, several Western countries, including France, Belgium, the UK, Canada, and Australia, plan to recognize Palestinian statehood during the upcoming meetings of the UN General Assembly on Sept. 8-23, joining 147 nations that already do. The military campaign has devastated the enclave, which is facing famine.

Last November, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.

Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war on the enclave14.

Israel and its main ally, the US, reject the recognition moves.

International critics say Israel's plan, which includes demilitarizing the whole strip as Israel takes security control, could worsen the humanitarian plight of the 2.2 million Palestinians who live there.

Israel has come under pressure from Arab and Western nations over its conduct in the war in Gaza. A global hunger monitor relied on by the United Nations has declared famine in areas including Gaza City.

Netanyahu says Israel has no choice but to complete the job and defeat Hamas, given that the militant group has refused to lay down its arms. Hamas says it will not disarm unless an independent Palestinian state is set up and will not free all hostages without an agreement ending the war15.

Massive pro-Palestinian protests in Western capitals have had an impact, as global public opinion is forcing Western leadership to support the Palestinian cause. However, the US is adamantly supporting Israel in its aggression in Gaza. Unless and until the US stops supporting Israel, the chances of an independent and sovereign Palestine do not exist at all. The Trupp administration intends to stop the war but will not support the independence cause of the Palestinian people. Only a groundswell of American public opinion demanding a two-state solution can be effective. The chances of that happening anytime soon are slim, however. Therefore, the misery and cruelty against the Palestinian people by the Israeli military will continue unabated. Too bad for the cause of global justice and human rights.

Notes

1 Israel pounds Gaza with fierce airstrikes; at least 700 Palestinians killed on The Express Tribune.
2 Israel orders Gaza evacuation as it prepares for a major attack on The Express Tribune.
3 Ibid.
4 Israeli military evacuation order triggers panic in Gaza City on Reuters.
5 Israel destroys second high-rise in Gaza City giving residents just 20 minutes to evacuate 15 storeys on Independent.
6 Hamas says leaders survived Israel’s attack on Qatar’s Doha on Al Jazeera.
7 Israeli military says it attacked Hamas leaders in Qatar’s Doha on Al Jazeera.
8 Israel destroys second high-rise in Gaza City giving residents just 20 minutes to evacuate 15 storeys on Independent.
9 Gaza reels under Israeli attacks on The News.
10 Israel destroys second high-rise as assault on Gaza City intensifies on BBC.
11 Gaza City officially in famine, with hunger spreading, says global hunger monitor on Reuters.
12 UN says time is short to stop famine spreading as Israel bombards Gaza City on Reuters.
13 Trump issues ‘last warning’ to Hamas to accept Gaza ceasefire deal on The Guardian and Reuters.
14 Palestinian president arrives in UK to discuss Gaza ceasefire efforts, Israeli settlements in West Bank on AA.
15 Israeli military evacuation order triggers panic in Gaza City on Reuters.