On September 16, 2025, the conflict in the Gaza Strip entered a new, grimmer phase as Israeli forces launched a sweeping ground assault on Gaza City, intensifying a war that has already left the region devastated and the world deeply divided. The offensive, part of what the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) have dubbed Operation Gideon's Chariots II, is the culmination of months of planning and comes nearly two years into Israel’s retaliatory campaign against Hamas following the group’s terror attacks in October 2023.
As Israeli tanks and troops pressed into Gaza City, residents described scenes of chaos and terror. According to CNN, terrified families packed what belongings they could carry, crowding onto trucks or pushing overloaded cars as they fled south along the battered coastal highway toward Deir al-Balah. The Israeli military had been urging civilians to evacuate for days, warning of the imminent incursion. Mohamed Albayani, a resident fleeing the city, told CNN, “This is bigger than a military operation; I think they are here to occupy.” Another resident, Wasfeya Albaba, recounted a night “similar to judgement day,” with relentless airstrikes and quadcopters hovering outside her door. “Strikes were one after the other. We were afraid, terrified. We couldn’t sleep. Suddenly, in the morning, we saw quadcopters right at our door,” she said.
The toll on civilians has been staggering. The former chief of the Israeli military acknowledged that over 10% of Gaza’s population has been killed or injured since the war began—an estimate echoed by the Palestinian health ministry. On the day of the assault, more than 100 Palestinians were reported killed in less than 24 hours, with the enclave’s largest hospital, Al-Shifa, recording at least 55 deaths by late afternoon. Among the harrowing images emerging from Gaza City were those of 11-year-old Marah Haddad, who was pulled alive from the rubble after nearly 10 hours trapped beneath a collapsed building in Al-Shawa Square, as documented by Getty Images and CNN journalists on the ground.
Israel’s stated objectives remain the demilitarization of Hamas and the release of hostages taken during the October 2023 attacks. Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz was unequivocal in his resolve, declaring, “Gaza is burning. We will not relent or turn back — until the mission is complete.” The IDF has estimated that the offensive could take “several months” to achieve its goals. Spokesperson BG Effie Defrin described Gaza City as “the central hub of Hamas’ military and governing power,” emphasizing that air, ground, and intelligence forces were working in coordination for “precise strikes.”
Yet, the humanitarian situation has deteriorated to what France’s foreign ministry called “an extremely serious humanitarian and health context.” France, which “strongly” condemned the intensified offensive, called on Israel to immediately lift all restrictions on the entry of humanitarian aid into Gaza “to allow its immediate, massive, and unhindered delivery.” The United Nations has warned that the latest Israeli operation risks the forcible displacement of nearly 1 million Palestinians still living in Gaza City, many of whom had already been displaced from other parts of the enclave.
On the diplomatic front, Israel finds itself increasingly isolated. While several Western nations initially supported Israel’s right to self-defense, many have since criticized the scale and intensity of its Gaza campaign. Norway, Spain, and Ireland recognized Palestinian statehood in spring 2024; France, Canada, and Australia have announced plans to do the same this month. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen recently warned that the EU would suspend bilateral support to Israel and even consider sanctions on certain far-right members of Israel’s government. “Europe must understand: Turning its back on Israel at this time is turning its back on Europe’s own interests,” Israeli President Isaac Herzog cautioned, warning of consequences for science, innovation, and alliances.
The situation escalated further after Israel’s missile strike on Doha, Qatar, on September 9, 2025, which killed six people, including a Qatari national. Israel claimed the strike targeted Hamas’ political leadership, who were reportedly discussing a U.S.-brokered ceasefire proposal at the time. Qatar, long a mediator between Israel and Hamas, responded with outrage, as Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani called on Arab and Muslim leaders to take “concrete steps” against Israel. At a press conference in Doha, foreign ministry spokesperson Majed al-Ansari said, “No validity to the talks when one party wants to assassinate anybody who is willing to talk on other side.”
For the United States, the situation is fraught with diplomatic and political complexity. Visiting U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who was in both Israel and Qatar on the day of the assault, stated, “Our preference, our number one choice, is that this ends with a negotiated settlement with Hamas.” Rubio stressed that the window for such a deal was rapidly closing. Meanwhile, President Donald Trump, when asked about the ground incursion, deflected, focusing on Hamas’ use of hostages as human shields: “If they put the hostages in front of them, Hamas, as protection, they call them bodyguards, they’re going to have hell to pay.”
International legal and humanitarian bodies have weighed in with unprecedented severity. On the very day of the assault, a United Nations Commission of Inquiry concluded that Israel has committed genocide against Palestinians in Gaza, calling it “the most authoritative UN finding to date.” The commission urged Israel and all UN member states to fulfill their legal obligations to end the genocide and punish those responsible. The U.S. State Department swiftly denounced the report, calling the accusation “the height of hypocrisy” and pointing to Hamas’ October 7 attacks as a “genocidal event.” Israel categorically rejected the findings, accusing the commission of relying on “Hamas falsehoods” and being proxies for the group.
The International Criminal Court (ICC) has also taken action, issuing arrest warrants in November 2024 for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, and senior Hamas officials on charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity. The Trump administration responded by sanctioning several ICC justices and UN officials involved in investigating Israeli actions.
Economically, the crisis is beginning to bite. In August, Norway’s sovereign wealth fund, the world’s largest, divested from companies linked to the Gaza conflict, including U.S. machinery manufacturer Caterpillar and five Israeli banks. Germany has halted weapon exports to Israel for use in Gaza. However, experts told CNBC that the likelihood of an Arab oil embargo akin to 1973 remains remote, as major producers such as Saudi Arabia and the UAE have not signaled any intention to restrict oil supplies.
Within the region, the Abraham Accords—signed by the UAE, Bahrain, Sudan, and Morocco in 2020 to normalize relations with Israel—are under immense strain. Emirati academic Abdulkhaleq Abdulla told CNBC the agreement faces “the most difficult time since it was signed.” Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has made normalization with Israel contingent on a credible and irreversible pathway to Palestinian statehood, a prospect that now seems more remote than ever.
As the ground offensive grinds on, the human cost continues to mount and the prospects for peace look increasingly bleak. The world watches, divided and anxious, as Gaza City burns and its people flee, desperate for safety and hope amid the rubble.
