The Media Line: The IDF Says It Now Controls 40% of Gaza City Ahead of Major Operation 

The IDF Says It Now Controls 40% of Gaza City Ahead of Major Operation 

By The Media Line Staff

The Israeli military announced Thursday that it has taken control of roughly 40% of Gaza City, the largest population center in the Gaza Strip, as it prepares for a major operation.  

Brigadier General Effie Defrin, a spokesperson for the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), said operations would “continue to expand and intensify in the coming days” to pressure Hamas “until it is defeated.” 

Israeli forces have stepped up air and artillery strikes in northern Gaza in recent days, with reports that shells were fired at empty areas to push civilians to leave before the expected assault. Haaretz reported that about 70,000–80,000 residents have fled Gaza City in the past three days, though hundreds of thousands are believed to remain. UN agencies estimate the city is home to nearly one million people, most of whom have already been displaced at least once during the war.

Separately, Palestinian-American political activist Bishara Bahbah told Saudi outlet al-Arabiya that a final ceasefire proposal is under discussion in Washington. He said the plan, backed by the Trump administration, calls for the release of all hostages in Gaza in exchange for a complete end to the war. According to Bahbah, President Donald Trump is seeking to apply firm pressure on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to accept the deal, a message he said was also relayed to Hamas.