'Gaza is burning': Video shows building razed to rubble as Israel begins major offensive

Israel carried retired dense airstrikes connected Gaza City connected Tuesday, hours aft US Secretary of State Marco Rubio pledged afloat enactment to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's caller subject violative aimed astatine eradicating Hamas.Rubio, visiting Jerusalem connected Monday, said Israel could "count connected our unwavering support" arsenic it pushed up with operations successful the war-ravaged Palestinian territory. He besides dismissed Qatar-brokered ceasefire efforts and called Hamas "barbaric animals."

Soon aft his comments, witnesses reported "relentless bombing connected Gaza City," with full residential buildings flattened and radical trapped nether rubble.

"We tin perceive their screams," a 25-year-old nonmigratory Ahmed Ghazal told AFP.

'Gaza is burning' aft aggravated bombing

Israel's defence curate Israel Katz said Tuesday that "Gaza is burning" aft overnight airstrikes pounded Gaza City, adding that Israel is preparing a caller violative connected the area.

The subject has urged civilians to permission earlier much crushed forces are deployed. While tens of thousands person fled, hundreds of thousands remain. Hamas has urged residents to enactment put.

Israeli forces person already been operating for weeks successful astatine slightest 4 eastbound suburbs, turning ample parts of 3 of them into wastelands. The service is present closing successful connected cardinal and occidental Gaza, wherever astir displaced radical person taken shelter.Many civilians accidental they cannot leave, citing deficiency of information oregon abstraction successful the south, which Israel has designated arsenic a "humanitarian zone," Reuters reported. Others accidental they cannot spend to move, oregon are hoping Arab leaders gathering successful Qatar connected Monday volition unit Israel to halt its plans.The Israeli service said it carried retired 5 waves of aerial strikes connected Gaza City implicit the past week, hitting much than 500 targets. These included Hamas reconnaissance and sniper positions, passageway openings, and weapons depots.Local officials told Reuters that astatine slightest 45 radical were killed crossed the enclave connected Sunday, astir of them successful Gaza City. Hamas claimed Israeli forces person destroyed astatine slightest 1,600 residential buildings and 13,000 tents since August 11.According to Axios News, connected Monday night, airstrikes intensified, and Palestinian media reported that Israeli tanks had moved into Gaza City.

'No amended future, until Hamas is eliminated'

Rubio's amusement of enactment for Netanyahu comes conscionable days earlier France hosts a UN acme wherever respective US allies program to recognise a Palestinian state, frustrated by what they spot arsenic Israel’s refusal to compromise. Netanyahu, powerfully opposed to Palestinian statehood, has warned of "unilateral steps" successful response. Members of his far-right furniture person called for annexation of the occupied West Bank, drafting protests from the United Arab Emirates, which normalised ties with Israel successful 2020.Rubio downplayed the planned designation arsenic "largely symbolic," but his sojourn was hailed by Netanyahu arsenic a "clear message" of solidarity. Standing beside the Israeli leader, Rubio said, "the radical of Gaza merit a amended future"."But that amended aboriginal cannot statesman until Hamas is eliminated.

As agelong arsenic Hamas exists, determination volition beryllium nary bid successful this region," Rubio added.Netanyahu besides signed an statement connected Thursday to beforehand a colony enlargement program cutting done West Bank onshore that Palestinians assertion for a aboriginal state.The United Arab Emirates warned the determination could undermine the US-brokered Abraham Accords, which normalised its ties with Israel. At the aforesaid time, Israel is pressing up with its violative successful Gaza City.

'We volition request to make arms industries successful Israel'

Later connected Monday, Netanyahu admitted that Israel is becoming progressively isolated internationally and whitethorn person to beryllium much connected itself. "Israel is successful a benignant of isolation," helium acknowledged during a concern ministry league successful Jerusalem."We volition progressively request to accommodate to an system with autarkic characteristics," Netanyahu said, utilizing the word for self-sufficiency."I americium a believer successful the escaped market, but we whitethorn find ourselves successful a concern wherever our arms industries are blocked.

We volition request to make arms industries present — not lone probe and development, but besides the quality to nutrient what we need," helium added.The United Nations has warned that implicit 1 cardinal radical successful Gaza are facing famine, though Israel has rejected the finding.According to Gaza’s wellness ministry, much than 64,900 people, mostly civilians, person been killed since Israel launched its retaliatory run aft Hamas’s October 7, 2023 attack. That battle near 1,219 radical dormant successful Israel and 251 taken hostage, of whom 47 stay successful Gaza.