Gaza City ground attack Israeli-Palestinian conflict

Israel launched a ground offensive in Gaza City, the central city of the Palestinian Gaza Strip, on Sept. 15. The move followed Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s announcement last month of a plan to take control of Gaza. Before deploying ground forces, including tanks, the Israeli military carried out airstrikes on Gaza City. Some analysts noted friction between U.S. President Donald Trump and Netanyahu over Israel’s recent airstrikes on the residence of senior Hamas officials in Doha, Qatar, but the operation ultimately reflected renewed U.S. support for Israel’s retaliatory actions.

According to Israeli media outlets including The Times of Israel and Ynet, Israeli forces carried out 37 airstrikes over roughly 20 minutes on the evening of Sept. 15. Ground troops were then deployed with tanks. The attacks focused on central Gaza City, including Al-Jalaa Street, the coastal areas of Sheikh Radwan, Al-Karama, and Tel Al-Hawa. The Israeli military also deployed booby-trap robots and Apache helicopters to open fire from above the city.

Residents described the bombardment as reminiscent of a “belt of fire.” One resident called it a “hellish night,” saying, “The Israeli military used all kinds of bombs and weapons on Gaza City.” The Jerusalem Post described the attacks as “a form of warfare not seen in northern Gaza in the past two years.” According to Axios, a senior Israeli military official said that more ground forces are expected to enter Gaza City in the coming days.

The ground operation in Gaza City was reportedly approved in advance by the Trump administration. Senior Israeli officials told that U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who was visiting Israel at the time, did not attempt to halt the ground offensive. A U.S. official said, “This is not the Trump administration’s war; it is Netanyahu’s war.” In other words, the Trump administration allowed the ground offensive, but ultimate responsibility rests with Prime Minister Netanyahu.

President Trump expressed frustration after Israel’s airstrikes in Qatar, saying he had received no prior notice and that “I am not at all happy about this.” His comments were interpreted as acknowledging criticism that the U.S. had largely allowed an attack on a key ally hosting the largest U.S. air force base in the Middle East.

On the same day, hours before the ground offensive, Secretary Rubio held a joint briefing with Netanyahu, stating, “We hope this situation ends peacefully and diplomatically. We will continue to seek that, but we must also prepare for the possibility that it will not.” After leaving Israel for Qatar, Rubio added, “Israel has begun the operation. We may have only days, at most a few weeks, to reach an agreement,” signaling pressure on Hamas.

Meanwhile, Qatar convened an emergency summit of Arab and Islamic countries in Doha, condemning Israel for the airstrikes and announcing that it would “reconsider diplomatic and economic relations” with Israel. Although Qatar has no formal diplomatic ties with Israel, it has maintained relatively moderate relations. At the summit, attended by leaders from 60 countries, Qatar’s Emir Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani criticized Israel, asking, “Why does Israel assassinate all negotiators while demanding the release of hostages?”


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