The drums of war are pounding on the doorstep of Gaza City. Residents of the largest city in northern Gaza, packed with locals and refugees, fear the hours are ticking down before a looming Israeli offensive.

Israel hammered Gaza City and its outskirts overnight, residents said Thursday, as the military announced it had taken the initial steps in its push to capture Hamas’s last major stronghold. The newly approved plan authorises the call-up of roughly 60,

Israel’s military announced the first steps of an operation to take over Gaza City on Wednesday and called up tens of thousands of reservists while the government considered a new ceasefire proposal to pause nearly two years of war.