Israeli air strikes 'wiping out' Gaza city neighbourhood in prelude to invasion

At least eight killed and hundreds wounded as Israel destroys homes in Al Zeitoun

The Israeli government has approved plans for military ground operations and air strikes on Al Zeitoun and adjacent neighbourhoods in an effort to take control of Gaza city. AFP

Residents of Gaza city say Israel has launched strikes on a busy neighbourhood, in what they fear is the prelude to a full-scale invasion of the city.

Intensified air strikes on the Al Zeitoun neighbourhood – one of the largest and most densely populated in Gaza city – killed at least eight Palestinians and wounded dozens on Thursday, Palestinian news agency Wafa said.

Gaza's civil defence agency said Israeli forces have destroyed more than 300 homes in the neighbourhood in just three days. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government last week approved plans to seize control of the city.

“This is no longer a military operation – it's a campaign to erase Al Zeitoun,” said Mahmoud Arhim, a resident who fled with his family after four days under siege. “We saw death with our own eyes. The neighbourhood has been wiped out completely.”

According to journalist Bilal Al Nabih, the Israeli army has invaded Al Zeitoun at least five times since the war escalated in March, but the current operation is by far the most destructive.

Israeli equipment has been used to detonate buildings deep within the neighbourhood, leaving entire residential blocks in ruins. Residents found themselves trapped inside their homes, completely cut off from the outside world.

While a few managed to escape during brief lulls in the bombardment, many others remain unreachable, their fate still unknown. Rescue efforts have been severely hindered.

Palestinian boys search for firewood in the wreckage of Gaza city. AFP

Mahmoud Basal, a civil defence spokesman, said crews are unable to reach many trapped residents due to the intensity of the continuing bombardments. “What is happening in Al Zeitoun is a grave and complex crime,” he said. “It aims to destroy what remains of Gaza city and its centre.”

Hospitals across Gaza are overwhelmed. The Ministry of Health reported that in the past 24 hours, 54 Palestinians were confirmed dead and 831 wounded.

Israeli preparations

Israel's army chief Lt Gen Eyal Zamir said on Thursday the military was “completing preparations” for the new offensive in Gaza. Ministers signed off the plans last week despite massive international opposition, with even close ally Germany saying it would no longer export weapons that could be used in Gaza.

“The campaign will end when we have ensured our security and our future,” said Lt Gen Zamir, who has made little secret of having opposed the plans behind the scenes. “The war being waged in the south is among the most complex we have ever known.”

Hopes of a ceasefire have faded after the US and Israel withdrew negotiators from Qatar, where mediators had proposed a 60-day truce and staggered release of hostages and prisoners. Hamas representatives were in Cairo this week for talks, but there was little optimism about the chances of a deal.

Mr Netanyahu says Israel has no choice but to “complete the job” by attacking Gaza city – and reoccupying Gaza almost exactly 20 years after an Israeli withdrawal in 2005. Although the army is stretched after 22 months of war, Lt Gen Zamir has said it will be able to capture the city.

For Mr Arhim, 43, the attacks on his neighbourhood are deeply scarring. “We were besieged for four days and got out by a miracle, me and my family of six,” he said. We saw death with our own eyes more than once.”

“It seems the occupation has decided to take over Gaza city, starting with Al Zeitoun, to reach the centre and destroy it completely, just like in the northern neighbourhoods and Rafah.”

Mr Arhim chose not to evacuate to the south during the war, holding on to his lifelong connection to the neighbourhood. “I was born here, I grew up here, and I raised my children here,” he says.

He described scenes of devastation. “No one could reach them because of the destruction, the shelling that never stopped, and the danger everywhere,” he says, referring to the bodies in the streets and the wounded left without aid.

Starvation has taken hold in Gaza amid massive pressure on Israel to allow more aid deliveries. AP

Starvation is also claiming lives across Gaza. Four more people – including children – died from malnutrition in the last day, raising the total to 239 such deaths, 106 of whom were children, according to the Gaza health ministry.

Nearly 200 Palestinians have been killed in the strip since Tuesday, including tens who were seeking aid, Wafa said. More than 100 charities and aid groups said in a letter published on Thursday that Israel was rejecting dozens of requests to bring in life-saving goods.

In March, Israel's government approved a new set of rules for foreign non-governmental organisations working with Palestinians. “Despite claims by Israeli authorities that there is no limit on humanitarian aid entering Gaza, most major international NGOs have been unable to deliver a single lorry of life-saving supplies since March 2,” the letter said.

Oxfam said supplies were stuck in warehouses in Jordan and Egypt while the situation in Gaza worsens. “Oxfam has over $2.5 million worth of goods that have been rejected from entering Gaza by Israel, especially wash and hygiene items, as well as food,” said policy worker Bushra Khalidi.

As the destruction of Al Zeitoun accelerates, calls are growing for urgent international intervention. Survivors describe a neighbourhood turned into a war zone – its homes completely flattened, its residents scattered or dead, and its streets filled with rubble.

“This must be stopped,” said Mr Arhim. “There has to be a solution to protect people before Gaza city is erased entirely.”