People use a truck to transport casualties of reported Israeli strikes on members of aid security committees set up by volunteers from prominent Palestinian families to prevent aid theft in Gaza on Wednesday — AFP GAZA, Aug 13 (AFP/Reuters): A Hamas official said Wednesday that Israeli forces were making "aggressive" incursions into Gaza City, after the military approved the framework for a new offensive in the territory.
"The Israeli occupation forces continue to carry out aggressive incursions in Gaza City," Ismail Al-Thawabta, director general of the Hamas government media office in Gaza, told AFP.
"These assaults represent a dangerous escalation aimed at imposing a new reality on the ground by force, through a scorched earth policy and the complete destruction of civilian property."
Netanyahu has 'lost the plot,'
says New Zealand PM
New Zealand's Prime Minister Christopher Luxon said on Wednesday that Israel's leader Benjamin Netanyahu had "lost the plot" as the country weighs up whether to recognise a Palestinian state.
Luxon told reporters that the lack of humanitarian assistance, the forceful displacement of people and the annexation of Gaza were utterly appalling and that Netanyahu had gone way too far.
"I think he has lost the plot," added Luxon, who heads the centre-right coalition government. "What we are seeing overnight, the attack on Gaza City, is utterly, utterly unacceptable."
Luxon said earlier this week New Zealand was considering whether to recognise a Palestinian state. Close ally Australia on Monday joined Canada, the UK and France in announcing it would do so at a UN conference in September.
The humanitarian crisis in Gaza has reached "unimaginable levels", Britain, Canada, Australia and several of their European allies said on Tuesday, calling on Israel to allow unrestricted aid into the war-torn Palestinian enclave.
Israel has denied responsibility for hunger spreading in Gaza, accusing Hamas militants of stealing aid shipments, which Hamas denies.
Israel's PM floats 'allowing'
Palestinians out of Gaza
Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday revived calls to "allow" Palestinians to leave the Gaza Strip, as the military prepares a broader offensive in the territory.
Past calls to resettle Gazans outside of the war-battered territory, including from US President Donald Trump, have sparked concern among Palestinians and condemnation from the international community.
Netanyahu defended his war policies in a rare interview with Israeli media, broadcast shortly after Egypt said Gaza mediators were leading a renewed push to secure a 60-day truce.
The premier told Israeli broadcaster i24NEWS that "we are not pushing them out, but we are allowing them to leave".
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