Israel’s plan to occupy Gaza City sparks global outcry
Israel's military will "take control" of Gaza City under a new plan approved by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's security cabinet, touching off a wave of international criticism Friday.
Nearly two years into the war in Gaza, Netanyahu faces mounting pressure to secure a truce to pull the territory's more than two million people back from the brink of famine and free the hostages held by Palestinian fighters.
Under the newly approved plan, the Israeli army "will prepare to take control of Gaza City while distributing humanitarian assistance to the civilian population outside combat zones", the premier's office said Friday.
Netanyahu's office said majority of the security cabinet had adopted "five principles", including demilitarization of the territory and "the establishment of an alternative civil administration that is neither Hamas nor the Palestinian Authority".
Global criticism
The new plan triggered swift criticism from across the globe, with EU, Belgium, China, Turkey, the UK and the UN's rights chief issuing statements of concern.
In a major shift, meanwhile, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz announced his country was halting military shipments to Israel, saying it was "increasingly difficult to understand" how the new plan would help achieve legitimate aims.
Israeli opposition leader Yair Lapid denounced the cabinet's move as "a disaster that will lead to many other disasters".
He warned on X that it would result in "the death of the hostages, the killing of many soldiers, cost Israeli taxpayers tens of billions, and lead to diplomatic bankruptcy".
The main campaign group for hostages' families also slammed the plan, saying it amounted to "abandoning" the captives.
An expanded Israeli offensive could see ground troops operate in densely populated areas where hostages are believed to be held, local media have reported.
The Israeli army said last month that it controlled 75 percent of the Gaza Strip, mainly from its positions in the territory along the border.
Out of 251 hostages captured during Hamas's 2023 attack, 49 are still being held in Gaza, including 27 the military says are dead.
‘Sacrificing hostages’
Hamas on Friday said the "plans to occupy Gaza City and evacuate its residents constitutes a new war crime".
It warned Israel that the operation would "cost it dearly", and that "expanding the aggression means sacrificing" the hostages.
International concern has been growing over the suffering of Palestinians in Gaza, where a UN-backed assessment has warned that famine is unfolding.
The World Health Organization said at least 99 people have died from malnutrition in the territory this year, with the figure likely an underestimate.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on Thursday in a letter addressed to OIC Secretary General Hissein Brahim Taha, Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, and Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan called for an emergency meeting of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) to address the “humanitarian catastrophe” unfolding in Gaza.
“The appalling situation in Gaza has now become one of the gravest crises facing the Islamic Ummah and the international community,” Araghchi said.
“The conditions in Gaza have exceeded the limits of human endurance. What is unfolding is not merely a humanitarian crisis — it is the systematic destruction of a besieged civilian population. The scale and intensity of the crimes being committed call for immediate and coordinated action.”
Meanwhile, in a phone call with his Egyptian counterpart Badr Abdelatty, Araghchi called for united Islamic action to halt Israel’s genocide in Gaza and attacks on Lebanon.
“In this call, both sides discussed the dire humanitarian conditions in Gaza resulting from the continuation of the cruel siege of the Strip, and the regime’s aggressive plans to intensify attacks and fully occupy the Gaza Strip,” the Iranian Foreign Ministry said in a Friday statement.