Israel starts Gaza assault, approves West Bank plan

IDF soldiers prepare tanks on August 18, 2025 near the Gaza Strip's northern borders, Israel. On Monday it was reported that Hamas has agreed to the most recent ceasefire and hostage release proposal with Israel. Meanwhile, Israel has continued carrying out strikes in Gaza as part of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's plan to expand the IDF offensive to fully occupy the enclave. The move has been met with widespread condemnation by the international community, as well as hostage families, who say the operation will further endanger the 20 or hostages still believed to be held alive by Hamas in Gaza, as well as one million Palestinians in Gaza City, who are already facing displacement and an acute hunger crisis. — IDF soldiers prepare tanks on Aug. 18, 2025, near the Gaza Strip's northern borders

(Image credit: Elke Scholiers / Getty Images)

What happened

Israel Wednesday said its forces have pushed into the outskirts of Gaza City and it will activate 60,000 reservists for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's planned operation to seize the whole city. Netanyahu's government also gave final approval Wednesday to a controversial settlement project in the West Bank that would effectively cut the occupied Palestinian territory in two. Far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich said approval of the settlements meant the "dangerous idea" of a Palestinian state was "being erased from the table."

Who said what

The Israeli Defense Forces "have begun preliminary operations and the first stages of the attack on Gaza City" and Hamas' "battered and bruised" fighters, Israeli military spokesperson Brig. Gen. Effie Defrin told reporters. But Israel's "exhausted military may face a manpower problem," CNN said. In a "country of fewer than 10 million people," The Associated Press said, the large call-up of reservists "carries economic and political weight."

Israel is "bucking international criticism" and "growing support" for Palestinian statehood in moving ahead with its Gaza City invasion and West Bank settlements, The New York Times said. The two moves suggest that Netanyahu is "bending to the ideologies of extremists" in his government, "even at the cost of isolating Israel internationally." In a new Reuters/Ipsos poll, 58% of Americans said they believed every country in the United Nations should recognize Palestine as a nation.

In Gaza, residents are "bracing for the worst," said Al Jazeera. Israel's assault "will just create another mass displacement of people who have been displaced repeatedly," U.N. spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric told reporters. The situation in Gaza is "nothing short of apocalyptic reality for children, for their families and for this generation," Save the Children regional director Ahmad Alhendawi told the AP.

What next?

Israel said it would warn Gaza City residents before a full-scale attack and give civilians a chance to evacuate. The IDF reservists won't have to report for duty until next month, "an interval that gives mediators some time to bridge gaps between Hamas and Israel" over a ceasefire proposal Hamas endorsed earlier this week, Reuters said.

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Rafi Schwartz has worked as a politics writer at The Week since 2022, where he covers elections, Congress and the White House. He was previously a contributing writer with Mic focusing largely on politics, a senior writer with Splinter News, a staff writer for Fusion's news lab, and the managing editor of Heeb Magazine, a Jewish life and culture publication. Rafi's work has appeared in Rolling Stone, GOOD and The Forward, among others.