Israel intensifies bombing in Gaza after Netanyahu’s promise to expand offensive

Residents of the city of Gaza said this was one of the worst nights of the last few weeks, increasing the fear that the military is preparing for a deeper offensive in the city, which, according to Hamas, is housing about 1 million people after the residents of the northern border of the Enclave.

The Israeli Armed Forces said their forces fired artillery against Hamas militants in the area. There were no signs of forces advancing in the city of Gaza as part of the newly approved Israeli offensive, whose beginning was not expected for the coming weeks.

“It looked like the war was starting over,” said Amr Salah, 25. “The tanks fired ammunition against the houses, several were hit, and the planes performed what we call fire rings, in which several missiles hit East Gaza roads,” he told Reuters for messages.

The Israeli military said that their forces dismantled on Sunday, east of the city of Gaza, a place that Hamas used to fire rockets against Israeli communities across the border.

Netanyahu said on Sunday that he had instructed the Israeli military to accelerate their plans for the new offensive.

“I want to end the war as soon as possible, which is why I instruct the IDF (Israeli Defense Forces) to shorten the schedule to take control of the city of Gaza,” he said.