Mapped: Israel's Escalated Assault on Gaza: The When, Where, and How

Israel continued to pound the Gaza Strip on Wednesday due to airstrikes as it resisted international pressure to stop its renewed assaults on the ravaged stronghold.

Many Palestinians lost their lives, including multiple women and an infant who is one week old , with at least 500 fatalities in the last week following Israel's launch of its latest operation, "Operation Gideon's Chariots".

In recent weeks, the Israeli military has carried out intense airstrikes and initiated fresh ground operations. Meanwhile, the global community has been urging the Netanyahu administration to grant some relief to both Palestinians and those providing humanitarian assistance.

Israel started permitting trucks carrying humanitarian assistance into Gaza on Tuesday after an 11-week closure, however, the UN states that the aid has not yet reached the Palestinians who desperately require it.

Netanyahu has likewise steadfastly refused to yield. increased pressure from the UK And other Western Allies. The UK declared it would suspend trade talks with Israel, threatening more severe actions should the new assault continue.

What is Israel doing in the Gaza Strip?

As the second day of ceasefire talks in Doha ended, Israel launched Operation Gideon’s Chariots, a major ground offensive which followed a series of intense air strikes on Gaza.

The Israeli military says it seeks to exert “tremendous pressure” on Hamas and expand “operational control” in the Gaza Strip.

In a social media statement on Monday, Benjamin Netanyahu said: “We are involved in extensive combat—intense and significant—and we are making headway. Our aim is to gain control over all regions of the Gaza Strip."

However, the intensification of Israel's offensive started earlier than Saturday. On Friday, they initiated a large-scale land, naval, and aerial operation in northern Gaza, resulting in at least 100 fatalities as reported by local health officials. This marked the most extensive ground assault since Israel relaunched its campaign in March, effectively terminating a tenuous two-month truce.

On Sunday, Israel declared that its military had commenced "large-scale ground operations" across Gaza involving troops from five divisions — equating to approximately tens of thousands of soldiers.

Israeli forces also launched attacks from the southern direction, according to researchers at Forensic Architecture, which is affiliated with Goldsmiths at the University of London. They claim that Israel is "developing a secondary militarized 'passageway' in Gaza," aiming to increase their dominance over the area.

As of Sunday evening, troops had not reached the centre of major cities such as Gaza City and Khan Younis, the New York Times reported. Details about the offensive are relatively scarce from the Israeli military.

Evacuation orders have been implemented across several regions throughout this past week, affecting places such as Gaza City, Khan Younis, Beit Lahia, and Rafah. This has led to the displacement of thousands more Palestinians who had previously found refuge there.

On Monday, the IDF cautioned residents of Khan Younis to move towards the coastline as they anticipated an "unparalleled assault," while their troops were advancing toward the southern town.

Hundreds of Palestinians have been killed by intense Israeli airstrikes since the ramped-up offensive began, including at least 82 on Wednesday.

Israeli troops also have also surrounded two of northern Gaza's last functioning hospitals, preventing anyone from leaving or entering the facilities, hospital staff and aid groups said this week. It came as the World Health Organisation warned on Wednesday that hospitals were at breaking point.

The Gaza health ministry reported on Sunday that since Israel renewed its attacks starting from March 18th, 3,193 individuals have lost their lives. This brings the total number of casualties above 53,000, as stated. The New Arab .

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