Israel continued to fight in an attempt to impose full control over the northern Gaza Strip against militants of the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas), while Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu discussed the ongoing war with U.S. President Joe Biden. This came two days after the United Nations Security Council issued a resolution calling for increased aid to the region but stopped short of demanding a ceasefire.
Thick smoke rose over the city of Jabalia in the northern strip on Saturday, which also houses Gaza's largest refugee camp. Residents reported ongoing airstrikes and bombardments from Israeli tanks that they said had advanced into the city. The White House stated that Biden and Netanyahu discussed in detail Israel's military operations in Gaza, including "its objectives and stages," the need to protect civilian lives, and securing the release of the remaining hostages. Netanyahu's office clarified that "he made it clear that Israel will continue the war until all its objectives are fully achieved."
The United States, Israel's main ally, continues to support it while expressing concern over the rising death toll and the worsening humanitarian crisis in the densely populated Gaza Strip. U.S. officials say they want and expect Israel to transition its military operations in Gaza soon to a less intense phase where more targeted operations focusing on Hamas leadership and infrastructure can take place. Biden told reporters, "I did not ask for a ceasefire," and Netanyahu’s office stated that he thanked Biden for the U.S. stance in the UN Security Council.
After days of controversy to avoid the U.S. threat of a veto, the Security Council issued a resolution on Friday urging urgent steps to allow humanitarian aid to "expand, safely and without obstacles, and to create the necessary conditions for a sustainable cessation of hostilities." The tone of the resolution was softened compared to previous drafts that called for an immediate end to the 11-week-long war and eased Israel's control over the delivery of aid, paving the way for a vote abstained by the United States, Israel's main ally.
The U.S. and Israel, which has vowed to eliminate Hamas, oppose a ceasefire, considering it would allow Hamas to regroup and rearm. The Palestinian Health Ministry reported on Saturday that the death toll has risen to 20,258, with thousands of other bodies believed to still be under the rubble. The conflict has led to the displacement of most of the strip's nearly 2.3 million residents. Israel stated on Sunday that 154 of its soldiers have been killed since the beginning of its ground invasion of the strip in response to the attack by Hamas militants on Israel, which it claims resulted in the deaths of 1,200 and the capture of 240.
The IDF spokesperson stated on Friday that the military has achieved near-total operational control over northern Gaza and is preparing to expand its ground offensive to include other areas in the strip, focusing on the south. Israeli Energy Minister Yisrael Katz, a member of the wartime cabinet, posted on X, "We must move forward for every fallen soldier too. Until Hamas is eradicated. Until the hostages are returned."
Israel is ordering residents to leave northern Gaza, but its forces are also bombing targets in the central and southern parts of the small coastal strip. Ziad, a paramedic and father of six, told Reuters by phone, "Where should we go? There is nowhere safe. They are asking people to head to Deir al-Balah (in central Gaza), where they are bombing day and night."
Ramzi Al-Aidi, a Gaza resident with a doctorate in law, said, "These are people who should be safe in their homes and protected by law, but international law has collapsed. If Israel were in the position of the Palestinians, there would have been a global outcry." The Al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of Hamas, announced that they destroyed five Israeli tanks around Jabalia, resulting in crew casualties after reusing two unexploded missiles fired by Israel earlier. Reuters could not independently verify this.
The Israeli army stated that it fired decoy shots in the Issa area of Gaza City to lure dozens of militants to a building that served as a Hamas headquarters in the northern strip. The statement said, "Israeli Defense Forces' ground and intelligence forces directed an Israeli Air Force fighter jet to strike the building and eliminate the terrorists." The army also released a video it claimed shows Hamas tunnels in the Issa area. Reuters could not independently verify the location or timing of the footage.
Israel accuses the group of digging tunnels and establishing other military facilities in areas populated by civilians to use them as human shields, a claim Hamas denies. The conflict has extended beyond the Gaza Strip to areas such as the Red Sea, where the Iran-aligned Houthi movement in Yemen has been attacking ships with missiles and drones in response to Israel's attack on Gaza.
The U.S. Central Command reported that the United States shot down four drones launched from areas controlled by the Houthis in Yemen towards a U.S. destroyer in the southern Red Sea on Saturday. This raises the number of such attacks on commercial shipping to 15. The U.S. Defense Department reported that a drone launched from Iran struck a chemical tanker in the Indian Ocean on Saturday. The British Maritime Trade Operations reported on Saturday that it received a report about a drone explosion near a vessel in the vicinity of the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, 45 nautical miles southwest of Salif in Yemen. The authority mentioned in a clarification note, "The ship did not report any damage, and it is said that all crew members are safe, and the authorities are investigating the matter." The authority stated earlier on Saturday that guidance had been issued to ships to exercise caution when transiting.
Iranian media cited Brigadier General Mohammad Reza Naghdi, assistant commander of the Revolutionary Guard for coordination affairs, warning that the Mediterranean Sea could be closed if the United States and its allies continue to commit "crimes" in Gaza, without clarifying how this would be done.
