IRIA News

5 minute read

Israel launched an extensive ground operation in Gaza on May 18, 2025, killing at least 140 Palestinians in what has become the single deadliest day since the war began in October 2023.

The military action was marked by relentless aerial and ground assaults that struck homes, hospitals, and densely populated civilian areas, drawing widespread condemnation and raising renewed fears of a humanitarian collapse.

The Israeli military announced the beginning of a new phase of the war under the banner “Operation Gideon’s Chariots,” an aggressive expansion involving both regular and reserve units of the Southern Command, with full support from the Israeli Air Force.

According to military sources, the operation targets both the northern and southern parts of Gaza, and in just the past week, over 670 sites were bombed, all described by Israel as “Hamas targets” located above and beneath the ground.

However, the strikes have exacted a devastating human cost. Medical sources said that at least 135 people were killed Sunday morning alone, with 42 fatalities reported in northern Gaza, the region most heavily bombed in recent days. Five journalists were also among the dead as their homes were targeted, prompting sharp criticism from human rights organizations and media watchdogs.

Hospitals under siege

Israel’s intensified assault has also included strikes on three major hospitals this week, effectively crippling the health infrastructure in an already overwhelmed enclave. On Sunday, the Indonesian Hospital, the last operational public hospital in northern Gaza, was surrounded and rendered nonoperational.

“The situation is catastrophic,” said Marwan Al Sultan, director of the hospital, who pleaded for international organizations to ensure the safety of medical teams trapped inside the facility.

Dr. Muhammad Abu Salmiya, director of the embattled al-Shifa Hospital, emphasized the dire implications of the attack on medical facilities. “Thousands of sick and wounded people could die,” he warned, adding that blood donations are urgently needed to treat the influx of casualties.

Humanitarian crisis

According to the Gaza Ministry of Health, the conflict has now claimed the lives of at least 53,339 Palestinians, with 121,034 others wounded since hostilities began in October 2023. In the past week alone, 464 Palestinians have been killed, many of them civilians and displaced families living in makeshift shelters or seeking refuge in hospitals.

Verified videos circulating online show scenes of horror, with charred bodies and people, including women and children, pulled from the rubble. Many of the injured have been taken to temporary field hospitals, including the Nasser Medical Complex, as traditional healthcare centers become nonfunctional.

In response to the bombardment of Khan Younis, Hamas issued a strongly worded statement. “By granting the terrorist occupation government political and military cover, the United States administration bears direct responsibility for this insane escalation in the targeting of innocent civilians in the Gaza Strip, including children, women, and the elderly,” the group said.

The statement added that the strikes on displaced people constituted a “brutal crime” and a “flagrant violation of international laws and norms.” It also condemned what it called the “ongoing persecution and killing” of journalists and media workers.

Diplomatic efforts

Despite the military escalation, negotiations between Israel and Hamas are reportedly continuing in Doha, Qatar. According to both sides, mediators are engaged in discussions, though Israel has stressed that no humanitarian aid will be allowed into Gaza during the negotiations, maintaining a blockade that has been in place since March 2, despite the risk of famine.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office stated on Sunday acknowledging that the negotiation team in Doha is still working, but with rigid preconditions, “Even at this very moment, the negotiation team in Doha is working to exhaust every possibility for a deal, whether according to the Witkoff framework or as part of ending the fighting, which would include the release of all the hostages, the exile of Hamas terrorists, and the disarmament of the Gaza Strip.”

The statement referenced U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff, who has been central in ongoing diplomatic efforts. Netanyahu’s office also rejected criticism from Oren Setter, a former Israeli negotiator who resigned in October and has publicly accused the government of squandering two past opportunities for a ceasefire deal that could have resulted in the release of hostages.

“I am concerned the government will once again ‘miss the opportunity’ of a comprehensive agreement in favor of a potential partial deal,” Setter said in a recent interview.

Meanwhile, far-right Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir urged Netanyahu to withdraw the negotiation team from Doha entirely. He reiterated his long-standing stance that Hamas must be fully eliminated, a central objective of Israel’s war aims since the outset of the conflict.

International outcry

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres expressed grave concern about Israel’s expanded operation, stating on the social media platform X, “I am alarmed by reported plans by Israel to expand ground operations and more.”

Humanitarian agencies and international watchdogs have warned of irreversible damage as Israeli forces deepen their presence on the ground while access to food, water, and medical care continues to be severely restricted for the two million people trapped in Gaza.

The current phase of the war shows no sign of abating. As the world watches with growing horror, the calls for a ceasefire are being drowned out by the roar of bombs and artillery fire. The human toll continues to rise by the hour, and with hospitals collapsing and negotiations hanging by a thread, Gaza faces what may be its darkest chapter yet.