Witnesses reported heavy bombardment in Gaza City, as Israel’s Defence Minister, Israel Katz, mentioned the military was tightening its encirclement of town.
“This is the last opportunity for Gaza residents who wish to do so to move south and leave Hamas operatives isolated in Gaza City,” Mr. Katz posted on X, warning that those that remained would “be considered terrorists and terrorist supporters”.
Mr. Katz mentioned the navy had seized the Netzarim hall, linking central Gaza to the western coast, successfully slicing the north of Gaza off from the south.
Anyone leaving Gaza City for the south must go by Israeli navy checkpoints, he added.
Smoke rises following an Israeli navy strike in Gaza City, as seen from the central Gaza Strip, on Wednesday, October 1, 2025. | Photo Credit: AP
Closing of final remaining route for individuals
The announcement got here hours after the navy mentioned it was closing the final remaining route for individuals to journey from southern Gaza to the north.
In Gaza City, 60-year-old Rabah al-Halabi, sheltering in a tent on the grounds of Al-Shifa Hospital, described relentless explosions.
“I will not leave because the situation in Gaza City is no different from the situation in the southern Gaza Strip,” he instructed AFP by phone.
“All areas are dangerous, the bombing is everywhere, and displacement is terrifying and humiliating,” he mentioned.
“We are waiting for death, or perhaps relief from God and for the truce to come.”
Hamas mentioned Mr. Katz’s feedback had been “a prelude to the escalation of war crimes being committed by his army”.
‘Ceasefire at any price’
The International Committee of the Red Cross mentioned intensified navy operations had pressured it to quickly droop actions in Gaza City.
Days earlier, the Doctors Without Borders charity halted its work within the metropolis, the place some U.N. businesses and assist organisations nonetheless function.
Meanwhile, Hamas was analyzing a peace plan proposed by Mr. Trump and backed by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
The plan requires a ceasefire, the discharge of hostages inside 72 hours, Hamas’s disarmament and a gradual Israeli withdrawal from Gaza.
A Palestinian supply near Hamas’s leaders instructed AFP that “no final decision” had been made and that “the movement will likely need two to three days”.
“Hamas wants to amend some of the items such as the disarmament clause and the expulsion of Hamas,” the supply mentioned.
They added that Hamas needed “international guarantees” for a full Israeli withdrawal and ensures Israel wouldn’t violate a ceasefire.
Gaza’s civil defence company — a rescue power working beneath Hamas authority — mentioned Israeli strikes killed at the very least 46 individuals throughout the territory on Wednesday, together with 36 in Gaza City.
Asked a couple of strike on a school-turned-shelter that the company mentioned killed eight individuals, the Israeli navy mentioned it had “struck a Hamas terrorist” and that “steps were taken in order to mitigate harm to civilians as much as possible”.
Media restrictions in Gaza and difficulties accessing swathes of the territory imply AFP can not independently confirm casualty figures supplied by both aspect.
Fadel al-Jadba, 26, mentioned he would keep in Gaza City.
“We want a ceasefire at any cost because we are frustrated, exhausted, and find no one in the world standing with us,” he instructed AFP.
Late on Wednesday, the Israeli navy mentioned in an announcement that 5 projectiles had been launched from Gaza into Israel, 4 of which had been intercepted and certainly one of which “fell in an open area”.
‘Two opinions’ in Hamas
Mr. Trump instructed reporters on Tuesday that Hamas had “about three or four days” to simply accept his 20-point Gaza plan, later warning the Islamist motion would “pay in hell” if it refused.
A supply conversant in the talks in Doha mentioned “two opinions exist within Hamas”.
“The first supports unconditional approval, as the priority is a ceasefire under Trump’s guarantees, with mediators ensuring Israel implements the plan,” the supply instructed AFP.
“The second has serious reservations regarding key clauses, rejecting disarmament and the expulsion of any Palestinian from Gaza. They favour conditional approval with clarifications reflecting Hamas’s and the resistance factions’ demands.”
Hamas’s October 7, 2023 assault on Israel resulted within the deaths of 1,219 individuals, largely civilians, in line with an AFP tally of Israeli official figures.
Israel’s retaliatory offensive has killed at the very least 66,148 Palestinians, in line with Health Ministry figures within the Hamas-run territory that the United Nations considers dependable.
Their information doesn’t distinguish between civilians and combatants, however signifies that greater than half of the lifeless are girls and kids.
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