Sawt Falasteen - Rescuers say 100 dead as Israel launches fresh Gaza offensive

The army said on Telegram it had begun the "initial stages" of the offensive, known as Operation Gideon's Chariots.

The operation was part of "the expansion of the battle in the Gaza Strip, with the goal of achieving all the war's objectives, including the release of the abducted and the defeat of Hamas", it said in a post in Arabic.

A separate statement in English said the army was "mobilizing troops to achieve operational control in areas of the Gaza Strip".

Gaza's civil defence agency said Israeli strikes on Gaza had killed 100 people on Friday, while the army said its forces had "struck over 150 terror targets throughout the Gaza Strip" in 24 hours.

Israel resumed its military offensive in Gaza on March 18 after a two-month truce in its war against Hamas, which was triggered by an attack by the Palestinian group in October 2023.

The latest operation comes as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu faces increasing pressure to lift a sweeping aid blockade on Gaza, as NGOs warn of critical shortages of food, clean water, fuel and medicines.

The return to fighting since March 18 has drawn international condemnation, with the UN's rights chief on Friday denouncing the renewed attacks -- and what he described as an apparent push to permanently displace the population.

- 'Ethnic cleansing' -

"This latest barrage of bombs... and the denial of humanitarian assistance underline that there appears to be a push for a permanent demographic shift in Gaza that is in defiance of international law and is tantamount to ethnic cleansing," Volker Turk said in a statement.

The main Israeli campaign group representing the families of hostages said that by extending the fighting, Netanyahu was missing a "historic opportunity" to get their loved ones out through diplomacy.

Hamas on Friday demanded the United States press Israel to lift the aid blockade in return for a US-Israeli hostage released by the group.

Edan Alexander, the last living hostage with US nationality, was freed last week after direct engagement with the Trump administration that left Israel sidelined.

As part of the understanding with Washington regarding Alexander's release, senior Hamas official Taher al-Nunu said the group was "awaiting and expecting the US administration to exert further pressure" on Israel "to open the crossings and allow the immediate entry of humanitarian aid".

Israel says its decision to cut off aid to Gaza was intended to force concessions from Hamas, which still holds dozens of Israeli hostages seized during the October 7, 2023 attack that sparked the war.

- 'People are starving' -

US President Donald Trump acknowledged on Friday that "a lot of people are starving" in the besieged Palestinian territory.

"We're looking at Gaza. And we're going to get that taken care of," Trump told reporters in Abu Dhabi, on a regional tour that excluded key ally Israel.

The Arab League is to meet in Baghdad on Saturday to discuss regional crises, with Gaza expected to be high on the agenda.

United Nations chief Antonio Guterres will attend the summit, and Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez -- who has sharply criticised Israel's offensive in Gaza -- is expected to address it as a guest.

The Hamas attack of October 7, 2023 resulted in the deaths of 1,218 people on the Israeli side, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official figures.

Of the 251 hostages taken during the attack, 57 remain in Gaza, including 34 the military says are dead.

The health ministry in the Hamas-run territory said 2,985 people have been killed since Israel resumed strikes on March 18, taking the war's overall toll to 53,119.

Y.AlMasri--SF-PST