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lite.cnn.com - on gopher - inofficial
ARTICLE VIEW:
Israeli tanks surround Gaza City ahead of ground incursion as EU
proposes sanctions amid global outcry
By Ibrahim Dahman Nadeen Ibrahim, Abeer Salman, Tim Lister, Lauren Izso
and Thomas Bordeaux, CNN
Updated:
1:26 PM EDT, Wed September 17, 2025
Source: CNN
Israeli tanks were stationed on the edge of on Wednesday ahead of a
planned ground operation into the enclave’s largest urban area,
according to eyewitnesses and satellite imagery.
Amid the military build-up, tens of thousands of Palestinians continued
to leave the city, which was estimated to have a total of about one
million inhabitants - many of them already displaced multiple times -
before Israel announced its plans for a ground incursion.
While the Israeli military announced Tuesday that the ground operation
had begun, eyewitnesses and satellite images revealed that tanks had
yet to enter the city.
Israel’s new operation comes in defiance of international
condemnation and as the United Nations and others have warned that the
will worsen an already dire humanitarian crisis, with parts of the Gaza
officially declared . On Tuesday, an independent UN inquiry concluded
for the first time that , which Israel denied.
Over the past 24 hours, 98 people were killed across Gaza, according to
the Palestinian health ministry, bringing the death toll since the war
began over 65,000 people.
The ministry doesn’t distinguish in its reporting between combatant
and civilian deaths but has previously said that some 70% of
casualties in Gaza have been women and children.
It’s unclear how many people still remain in Gaza City or where those
who have left are heading, as much of southern Gaza is already
overcrowded with the displaced.
Massive tent encampments throughout the city are still visible on
satellite images, but more than 350,000 people have left, an Israeli
military official told CNN on Tuesday, a figure which CNN cannot
independently verify.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) Wednesday details of a new route that
civilians should use to leave the city. It said movement would be
permitted along Salah al-Din Street, the main north-south artery in the
territory. In what appears to be an effort to accelerate the forced
exodus from Gaza City, the IDF said the route would be open for 48
hours only, until Friday midday local time.
Thirty-year old Akram Abu Watfa told CNN said he and his family had
slept in the streets of Sheikh Radwan, north of Gaza City, for three
nights, until they found a truck to transport some of their belongings.
“We arrived in Deir al-Balah (in southern Gaza) on an empty plot of
land and are trying to buy wood and tent supplies,” he said.
Tanks have yet to enter the city
Eyewitnesses told CNN Wednesday that Israeli tanks and troops are now
gathered at the Sheikh Radwan Pond area, just north of Gaza City.
Satellite imagery from Tuesday showed tanks had advanced towards Gaza
City from previous positions but had not entered the city itself.
Armored vehicles had moved about two kilometers (1.2 miles) from the
direction of the Zikim Crossing on Gaza’s northern border with
Israel.
The Israeli military has amassed two major groups of armored vehicles
in Sheikh Radwan, to the north of Gaza City, according to the imagery,
with additional detachments of armored vehicles stationed along roads
that lead toward Israel.
The IDF says it has continued strikes against “Hamas positions” in
Gaza City, including what it described as a weapons production facility
that was hit Monday. It said Wednesday that air strikes and artillery
fire had struck more than 150 targets throughout Gaza City in support
of ground forces over the past 24 hours.
The Palestinian health ministry said that among places struck was
Al-Rantisi Children’s Hospital in Gaza City the enclave’s only
specialist hospital for children. The ministry said the upper floors of
the hospital, where 80 children were being treated, were hit three
times. It did not issue details of any casualties. CNN has reached out
to the Israeli military for comment.
An NGO working in Gaza City, Medical Aid for Palestinians, emergency
departments in the city’s hospitals were “overwhelmed with
casualties and are working with severely depleted stocks of essential
medicines and supplies.”
Global pressure builds
International anger at the Israeli operation in Gaza City continues to
mount. said Wednesday that it was strongly opposed to the offensive and
urged Israel to halt its military operations in Gaza at once.
Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Canada also condemned the Israeli offensive,
and the European Commission proposed new trade sanctions targeting
Israel and far-right Israeli ministers in response to the ongoing
campaign.
If the measures are approved by the European Union’s member states,
the bloc’s free trade agreement with Israel will be partially
suspended. Last week, European Commission President Ursula von der
Leyen said the Commission would propose to “suspend trade concessions
with Israel, sanction extremist ministers and violent settlers, and put
bilateral support to Israel on hold.”
The EU’s foreign policy chief, Kaja Kallas, said “the aim is not to
punish Israel. The aim is to improve the humanitarian situation in
Gaza.”
However, some member states have expressed reservations about such a
sweeping move. The EU is Israel’s biggest trading partner, accounting
for 32% of Israel’s total trade in goods based on 2024 data,
according to the European Commission.
Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar said that Europe’s move was
“morally and politically distorted,” adding that “moves against
Israel will harm Europe’s own interests.”
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