US alarmed as Israel ramps up strikes on Gaza

Israel launched massive attacks on the Gaza Strip, blasting the entire Palestinian territory and killing hundreds of people in what Washington claimed was a new and enlarged phase of the war that broke Israeli agreements to safeguard civilians more.

The Israeli military announced on Friday that it had attacked over 450 targets in Gaza from the air, sea, and land in the last 24 hours—the highest number since a ceasefire broke last week and nearly twice as many as has been regularly reported before then.

According to the largest U.N. agency in Gaza, society is “on the verge of a full-blown collapse” since the great majority of people are now uprooted and unable to receive help, hospitals are overcrowded, and food supplies are running low.

Both the Israeli military and residents reported increased combat in the south, where they launched a fresh assault this week, and in the northern districts, where Israel had earlier declared that its troops had finished most of their work last month.

Over 17,170 people have died as a result of Israel’s two-month war in Gaza, according to the health ministry in Gaza. Thousands more are missing and are thought to be buried beneath debris. On Thursday, 350 individuals were confirmed murdered. On Friday morning, there were reports of further strikes in Gaza City, the Nusseirat camp in the middle, and Khan Younis in the south.

“As we stand here almost a week into this campaign into the south… it remains imperative that Israel put a premium on civilian protection,” U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken told a press conference in Washington on Thursday.

“And there does remain a gap between… the intent to protect civilians and the actual results that we’re seeing on the ground.”

After Hamas militants went on the rampage through Israeli cities on October 7, killing 1,200 people and taking over 240 captives, according to Israeli estimates, Israel began its campaign to destroy the Hamas organisation that controls Gaza.

Since then, most of Gaza’s 2.3 million residents have been forced to flee their homes, with many having to do so three or four times, leaving behind just the possessions they can take.

Residents claim it is now nearly impossible to find safety in the Gaza Strip since the fighting is currently occurring simultaneously in both half of the region. Israel claims to be giving more information than before regarding safe areas and how to get there, and it holds Hamas accountable for any harm that occurs to civilians as a result of its activities among

(With agency inputs)