Gaza situation turns from bad to worse

Israeli ground forces fought deadly battles with Hamas fighters inside Gaza yesterday and sent tanks to the outskirts of the biggest city while air strikes kept raining down on the besieged Palestinian territory.

The intensifying military campaign since the October 7 Hamas attacks has sharply heightened fears for the 2.4 million civilians trapped inside Gaza, where the health ministry says more than 8,300 have died.

Concern has surged about the widening humanitarian crisis and the fate of hospitals in the war zone where, according to the World Health Organisation, many patients cannot be safely moved despite Israel’s evacuation order.

On Sunday, the White House told Israel that it must protect innocent Gaza residents by distinguishing between Hamas and civilians, as world leaders stepped up calls for desperately needed humanitarian aid to reach the war-torn Palestinian territory.

Meanwhile, The International Criminal Court’s chief prosecutor Karim Khan yesterday warned that blocking humanitarian aid from entering Gaza could constitute a crime.

The October 7 Hamas incursion set off the bloodiest-ever Gaza war, marked by weeks of withering aerial bombardment by Israel and three continuous nights of ground operations mainly centred on northern Gaza.

In heavy clashes overnight, the Israeli army said it had killed dozens of militants hiding “inside buildings and tunnels”.

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