Israel announced plans to intensify airstrikes on Gaza on Monday, describing the operation as a “mighty hurricane,” aimed as a final warning to Hamas. The ultimatum demands that the fighters release all hostages and surrender, following a demand by US President Donald Trump.
According to residents, Israeli forces targeted Gaza City with airstrikes and destroyed armored vehicles within the streets. Hamas reported that it was reviewing the latest US ceasefire proposal, which was delivered on Sunday, accompanied by a warning from Trump that it represented the militant group’s “last chance.”
“A mighty hurricane will strike the skies over Gaza City today, causing the roofs of the terror towers to tremble,” Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz wrote on X.
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“This serves as the final warning to the murderers and rapists of Hamas, both in Gaza and in luxury hotels abroad: Release the hostages and lay down your arms, or Gaza will face destruction, and you will face annihilation,” he stated.
Katz’s post came before reports surfaced about a shooting at a bus stop in Jerusalem that resulted in five fatalities. Hamas commended the attackers.
A senior Israeli official mentioned that the latest US proposal for Gaza involves Hamas returning all 48 remaining hostages, whether living or deceased, on the first day of a ceasefire, during which negotiations to end the war would take place.
Hamas has consistently stated its intention to retain at least some hostages until negotiations conclude. In a statement, it pledged to release all hostages contingent upon a “clear announcement of an end to the war” and the withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza.
Gaza Offensive
Last month, Israel launched a significant assault on Gaza City, where hundreds of thousands of residents reside in the ruins, having returned after the early weeks of intense fighting nearly two years prior.
Residents of Gaza City reported that Israeli forces bombarded several districts both from the air and ground, detonating decommissioned armored vehicles filled with explosives, leveling clusters of homes in the Sheikh Radwan, Zeitoun, and Tuffah neighborhoods.
At least 12 Palestinians, including Palestinian journalist Osama Balousha, were reported killed in Gaza on Monday, according to medical sources.
Nearly 250 journalists have died in Gaza during the conflict, as reported by Palestinian authorities, making it the deadliest war for media personnel in recent memory. Israel prohibits all foreign reporters from entering Gaza, resulting in all journalist casualties being Palestinians. Palestinian officials claim that Israel has deliberately targeted some journalists, an allegation that Israel denies.
On Sunday, U.S. President Donald Trump suggested that a Gaza agreement might soon be reached to ensure the release of all hostages held by Hamas. Earlier, he issued what he termed his “last warning” to the Palestinian militant group.
An Israeli official stated that Israel is “seriously considering” Trump’s proposal but did not provide further details.
The conflict began in 2023 with an assault by Hamas-led fighters on southern Israel, resulting in 1,200 deaths and the capture of over 250 hostages taken to Gaza. Most hostages were released during ceasefires in November 2023 and January-March 2025, but the group has retained others as leverage in negotiations.
Israel’s assault has devastated much of the enclave, leading to a humanitarian crisis. Health officials in the enclave report nearly 63,000 Palestinian deaths.
The territory’s health ministry reported on Monday that six more Palestinians, including two children, died from malnutrition and starvation in the past 24 hours, raising the death toll from such causes to at least 393, with most occurring in the past two months.
Israel, controlling all supplies into Gaza, claims that the extent of hunger has been exaggerated and attributes reported deaths to other causes.
Efforts to negotiate an end to the conflict have repeatedly failed due to Israel’s condition that Hamas must release all hostages and surrender. Hamas insists it will not disarm until Palestinians achieve an independent state.
