Israel begins ground attack on Gaza, with planes, drones, missiles, and helicopters reportedly already entering the main city of the Strip. It is the heaviest invasion of these two years of war.This operation is just the beginning", Israeli military leaders explain. Tanks and special forces advanced right into the center of Gaza City, where many of the hostages still held by Hamas are believed to be hiding. Sources in the Strip report that IDF tanks entered Al-Jalaa Street, in the heart of Gaza City. The media reported 37 attacks in 20 minutesjust before midnight.”The city is burning and we will continue until Hamas is defeated,” said Defense Minister Israel Katz, stressing that “We will not give up and we will not go back, until the mission is completed,” the Israeli minister underlines.
Palestinians continue to flee, so much so that according to the Israeli army there are around 300 thousand people who have already left the city, while the death toll The death toll from the ground attack on the city has already reached 62, including children. The Wafa news agency, citing medical sources, says that most of those killed in the attack that began Monday evening were in Gaza City. Among them were two people killed in the Nassr neighborhood of Gaza City while taking shelter in a tent. Dozens have been injured.
Rubio: "There's little time left for an agreement; Qatar is the only one who can mediate."
The US secretary of state Marco Rubio warned today that Hamas has only days to accept a ceasefire agreement, as Israel bombs Gaza City. The Jewish state "has begun conducting operations" in the Strip's main city, "so we think we have a very short window of time to reach an agreement: we no longer have months, we probably have days, maybe a few weeks left," Rubio told reporters as he left Israel for Doha. The US Secretary of State added that Only Qatar has the capacity to mediate in Gaza, despite the Israeli attack on Hamas in the Arab country a week ago.
“Obviously they have to decide whether they want to do it after last week or not, but we want them to know that if there is any country in the world that could help end this situation through negotiations, it is Qatar,” Rubio said.
Trump: "Hamas should not use hostages as a shield."
Hamas “release all hostages now.” He wrote it Donald Trump on his social media platform Truth. "I just read news reports that Hamas has taken hostages above ground to use them as human shields against Israel's ground offensive. I hope Hamas leaders know what they're getting into if they do something like that. This is a human atrocity, the likes of which few have ever seen," added Trump, who later reiterated that Netanyahu hadn't warned him before attacking Doha.
The families of the hostages protest
In the night, The families of the hostages headed towards the Prime Minister's residence Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu marched on Gaza Street in Jerusalem, in a march that began amid reports of heavy attacks on Gaza City and the entry of IDF tanks into the city, Ynet reported. Israel's Hostages Families Forum also launched a "desperate appeal" to protect their loved ones, accusing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of sacrificing them. The Times of Israel reported this.
"The 710th night in Gaza," the group says, "could be the last night in the lives of the hostages who are barely surviving, and the last night in which it will be possible to locate and return the murdered hostages for a dignified burial." The Forum maintains, the Israeli newspaper continues, that A significant number of the 22 hostages considered alive by Israel are being held in Gaza City“The prime minister is consciously choosing to sacrifice them on the altar of political considerations,” the group added, accusing him of ignoring the advice of the IDF Chief of Staff, who had warned against the operation.
