The Japan Times - UN experts warn of 'annihilation' in Gaza amid Israeli strikes

A planned expanded offensive revealed by the Israeli military has drawn international condemnation, after UN agencies previously warned of humanitarian catastrophe in the Palestinian territory already devastated by 19 months of war.

More than 20 independent United Nations experts said the world faced a "stark decision" to "remain passive and witness the slaughter of innocents or take part in crafting a just resolution".

The experts implored the international community to avert the "moral abyss we are descending into".

Israel's broader offensive, approved by the government amid a two-month aid blockade on Gaza, would include displacing "most" of its residents, the military has said.

France's President Emmanuel Macron on Wednesday called the situation in Gaza "the most critical we have ever seen".

Spain's Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said Madrid will present a draft resolution at the UN General Assembly aimed at "proposing urgent measures to stop the killing of innocent civilians and ensure humanitarian aid" in Gaza.

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer told parliament the situation in Gaza and the occupied West Bank was "increasingly intolerable".

Rescuers in the Palestinian territory said Israeli bombardment on Wednesday killed 42 people -- 31 in Gaza City.

"At least 16 martyrs and dozens of wounded were transferred to Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City" after the Al-Rimal neighbourhood was bombarded, spokesman Mahmud Bassal told AFP.

- 'World stands by' -

He earlier reported 15 dead in strikes on the Tuffah district east of Gaza City and 11 killed elsewhere in the territory.

One strike hit a house in the southern city of Khan Yunis, killing eight Al-Qidra family members and wounding 12, Bassal said.

The dead were aged between two and 54, he added.

AFP footage from Khan Yunis's Nasser Hospital showed wounded children crying on hospital beds while bodies covered in blankets arrived in ambulances.

"They were sleeping and the house collapsed on them," said Abir Shehab, adding her brother had been killed.

"We die of hunger, we die of war, we die of fear, we die of everything, and the whole world stands by and watches us die," she said.

Israel's military did not immediately comment on the strikes.

On Wednesday Hamas reiterated its call for a "comprehensive" agreement to end the war.

A two-month ceasefire collapsed in March, with Israel resuming intense strikes on Gaza on March 18.

Israel demands the return of all hostages seized in Hamas's unprecedented October 2023 attack and Hamas's disarmament, which the group has rejected as a "red line".

Hamas has consistently demanded that a truce deal must lead to the war's end, a full Israeli withdrawal from the territory and a surge in humanitarian aid.

"Hamas and the resistance factions insist on reaching a comprehensive agreement and a full package to end the war and aggression, along with a roadmap for the day after," political bureau member Bassem Naim told AFP Wednesday.

- 'Desperate attempts' -

"There are desperate attempts ahead of (US President Donald) Trump's visit to the region... to force through a partial deal," he said.

Trump is due in the Gulf next week for talks with the powerful monarchies.

An Israeli official said this week the expanded Gaza offensive would entail the "conquest" of Gaza.

Before it begins, a senior Israeli security source had said the timing of troop deployments allowed a "window of opportunity" for a possible hostage deal coinciding with Trump's visit.

"We want to try and get as many hostages saved as possible," Trump said at the White House, without elaborating.

The health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza said Wednesday at least 2,545 people have been killed since Israel resumed its campaign, bringing the war's overall toll to 52,653.

Hamas's October 2023 attack resulted in the deaths of 1,218 people on the Israeli side, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official figures.

Militants also abducted 251 people, 58 of whom are still being held in Gaza, including 34 the Israeli military says are dead.

The foreign ministers of Spain, Iceland, Ireland, Luxembourg, Norway and Slovenia in a joint statement Wednesday said they "firmly reject any demographic or territorial change in Gaza".

UN rights chief Volker Turk voiced concerns that Israel's plans to expand its offensive aim to create conditions threatening Palestinians' "continued existence" in Gaza.

He said they "will almost certainly cause further mass displacement, more deaths and injuries of innocent civilians".

Rights group Amnesty International said Israel "must immediately abandon any plans for annexation in Gaza and mass forcible transfer of Palestinians," which "would gravely violate international law".

"Israel has continued to commit genocidal acts, fully aware of the irreversible harm being inflicted on Palestinians in Gaza," a statement said.

M.Saito--JT