The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) said on Tuesday (December 5) that its ground operation in Gaza saw its "most intense day" yet, as it continued an offensive that has expanded to all of the strip.
This meant that their next major target was to push into Khan Younis, Gaza's second-largest city.
According to The Times of Israel, the IDF has been encircling the city and advised Palestinian civilians to temporarily evacuate Khan Younis to flush out Hamas militants. At some point, Israeli troops were engaged in house-to-house combat against Hamas fighters.
IDF Chief of the General Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi described the move as the "third phase" of its military operation, which targeted Hamas's strongholds in the south.
Israel Told to Scale Back Offensive
However, many in the international community have told Israel to scale back its offensive.
The United Nations warned that the offensive extending into southern Gaza would create "an even more hellish scenario." UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said that the people of Gaza do not have any safe place to go as many people from northern Gaza have already evacuated into the south.
Meanwhile, in a rare rebuke, US State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said that Washington officials believe that the Jewish State was not doing enough to allow humanitarian aid into Gaza, adding that the roughly 100 trucks of aid and 70,000 liters of fuel were not enough to sustain whatever was left of Gaza's population.
In response, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that the only way to end Israel's war against Hamas was to use "overwhelming force."
