The Japan Times - Israel ups pressure on Gaza City as Trump eyes post-war plan

Israel is under mounting pressure both at home and abroad to end its almost two-year campaign in Gaza, where the military is preparing to conquer the territory's largest city and the United Nations has declared a famine.

Mediators have circulated a draft ceasefire and hostage release deal which has been accepted by Palestinian militant group Hamas, whose October 2023 attack triggered the devastating war. But Israel has yet to give an official response.

On the ground, the Israeli military said its troops were "operating on the outskirts of Gaza City to locate and dismantle terror infrastructure sites above and below ground".

Residents of the Zeitoun neighbourhood of the city spoke of heavy Israeli bombardment overnight.

"Warplanes struck several times, and drones fired throughout the night," Tala al-Khatib, 29, told AFP by telephone.

"Several homes in Zeitoun were blown up. We are still in our house -- some neighbours have fled, while others remain. But wherever you flee, death follows you," she said.

Abdel Hamid al-Sayfi, 62, said he hadn't gone outdoors since Tuesday afternoon.

"Whoever steps outside is fired upon by the drones," he told AFP by telephone.

"My phone battery is about to die, and once it does, we will lose all contact. Our fate is unknown."

Defence Minister Israel Katz vowed on Friday to destroy Gaza City if Hamas does not agree to end the war on Israel's terms.

It came after the defence ministry approved the military's plan to seize the city and authorised the call-up of roughly 60,000 reservists.

It also came as the United Nations officially declared a famine in Gaza governorate, including Gaza City, that it blamed on "systematic obstruction of aid" by Israel.

As pressure builds on Israel to wrap up its offensive, Donald Trump's special envoy Steve Witkoff said the US president would host top officials at the White House on Wednesday to thrash out a detailed plan for post-war Gaza.

"We've got a large meeting in the White House tomorrow, chaired by the president, and it's a very comprehensive plan we're putting together on the next day," Witkoff said on Fox News, without offering more details.

Trump stunned the world earlier this year when he suggested the United States should take control of the Gaza Strip, clear out its inhabitants and redevelop it as seaside real estate.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu praised the proposal, which sparked an outcry in Europe and the Arab world.

- 'Will end in Gaza' -

As Israel's security cabinet convened on Tuesday evening, tens of thousands of protesters massed in commercial hub Tel Aviv to demand an end to the war and a deal to return the hostages.

Afterwards, Netanyahu declined to be drawn on what had been decided. "But I will say one thing: it started in Gaza and it will end in Gaza. We will not leave those monsters there," he said.

Netanyahu last week ordered immediate talks aimed at securing the release of all remaining captives, while also doubling down on the plan to seize Gaza City.

That came days after Hamas said it had accepted the latest ceasefire proposal put forward by mediators, which would see the staggered release of hostages over an initial 60-day period in exchange for Palestinian prisoners held by Israel.

In Doha on Tuesday, Qatari foreign ministry spokesman Majed al-Ansari told a regular news conference that mediators were still "waiting for an answer" from Israel.

The war was sparked by Hamas's October 2023 attack, which resulted in the deaths of 1,219 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on Israeli figures.

Out of 251 hostages seized during the attack, 49 are still held in Gaza, including 27 the Israeli military says are dead.

Israel's retaliatory offensive has killed at least 62,819 Palestinians, most of them civilians, according to figures from the health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza that the United Nations considers reliable.

K.Tanaka--JT