ITV News speaks to Israel-based reporter Noga Tarnopolsky and Middle East security expert at RUSI Dr Burcu Ozcelik about Israel’s plan to take Gaza City.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer has condemned Israel’s decision to take over Gaza City as "wrong", saying it will "only bring more bloodshed".
Israel’s security cabinet approved the plan to take over the territory’s most populated city during a late night cabinet meeting.
The Israeli military “will prepare to take control of Gaza City while providing humanitarian aid to the civilian population outside the combat zones,” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said in a statement on Friday.
Ahead of the meeting, Netanyahu had said he intended to take over the whole of the Gaza Strip and then turn it over to "civilian governance".
The final decision stopped short of that, but given that most of Gaza’s population is sheltering in Gaza City, the revised plan is set to exacerbate the humanitarian catastrophe unfolding in the territory.
Hamas rebuffed Netanyahu’s plans in a statement and said people in Gaza would “remain defiant against occupation".
“Expanding of aggression against our Palestinian people will not be a walk in the park," the group said.
Israel’s decision was made despite mounting international pressure to end the war.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said the plan would “only bring more bloodshed”.
"The Israeli Government’s decision to further escalate its offensive in Gaza is wrong, and we urge it to reconsider immediately," the prime minister said in a statement.
“This action will do nothing to bring an end to this conflict or to help secure the release of the hostages. . It will only bring more bloodshed.
“What we need is a ceasefire, a surge in humanitarian aid, the release of all hostages by Hamas and a negotiated solution.
“Our message is clear: a diplomatic solution is possible, but both parties must step away from the path of destruction.”
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