Israel Builds Up Forces Ahead of Gaza City Offensive

Israeli reservists began reporting for duty on Tuesday as part of a mobilisation ahead of a planned offensive to capture Gaza City, nearly two years into a devastating war. Despite mounting domestic and international pressure to end the campaign, Israel has intensified its operations, laying the groundwork for seizing the Palestinian territory's largest urban centre.

Gaza's civil defence agency reported that at least 85 people were killed on Tuesday across the Strip, which has been facing a severe humanitarian crisis for months.

Palestinians in Gaza City describe the situation as hopeless and exhausting.

“There is no place for us to go, and no means to get there. We are exhausted physically and mentally from displacement and from the war,” said Amal Abdel-Aal, 60, living in a tent in the city’s west.

Khalil al-Madhoun, 37, living in a partially destroyed apartment in western Gaza, added that the city’s centre and southern areas were completely overcrowded, having failed to find space for a tent despite travelling south twice.

Most of Gaza's population of over two million people has been displaced at least once during the war.

Israeli media reported that around 40,000 reservists are being called up in the first wave. Army chief Eyal Zamir told reservists reporting for duty that they were deployed to “enhance the strikes of our operation”, adding: “We are already entering places we have never entered before.”

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addressed the troops, crediting them with advancing “Israel towards a sweeping victory” and stating that they were now at “the decisive stage”.

A military spokesman, Avichay Adraee, posted on X warning Gazans of the “expansion of combat operations towards Gaza City”, while promising that humanitarian services would be provided in Al-Mawasi — a designated humanitarian zone that has nonetheless been repeatedly struck.

In mid-August, the UN human rights office reported that Palestinians in Al-Mawasi had “little or no access to essential services and supplies”.

Gaza’s civil defence agency reported that 10 people were killed in an Israeli airstrike on a residential building in the southwest of Gaza City. AFP footage from Tel al-Hawa showed Palestinians carrying a deceased girl from the rubble.

“We were sleeping safely in our homes and suddenly woke up to the sound of bombing and destruction, and found most of our neighbours murdered and injured,” said Sanaa al-Dreimli.

The Israeli military requested precise timeframes and coordinates to investigate the reports. Due to media restrictions and limited access, AFP cannot independently verify all casualty figures.

Pressure is mounting on Israel to halt its offensive, which it claims is aimed at eradicating Hamas and freeing hostages seized during the group’s October 2023 attack.

• Belgium has joined other Western countries, including Australia, Canada, and France, in recognising the State of Palestine at the upcoming UN General Assembly.
• Hamas’s October 2023 attack killed 1,219 people, mostly civilians, and 251 hostages were taken; 47 remain in Gaza, with 25 reported dead by the Israeli military.
• Israel’s retaliatory strikes have killed at least 63,633 Palestinians, primarily civilians, according to Gaza’s health ministry, figures considered reliable by the UN.

Summary Table: Gaza Offensive

The city braces for an imminent ground offensive, with civilians reporting extreme overcrowding, humanitarian shortages, and increasing fear of escalating violence.