Israeli strikes across Gaza kill at least 92 as Israel prepares to ramp up its offensive

By WAFAA SHURAFA and TIA GOLDENBERG DEIR AL-BALAH Gaza Strip AP Israeli strikes across Gaza killed at least people including women children and a local journalist administrators reported Wednesday as Israel prepares to ramp up its campaign in the strip with the devastating war now entering its th month Two Israeli airstrikes on Wednesday in central Gaza killed at least people and wounded including several children though the actual death toll is likely higher according to robustness functionaries The Israeli military had no immediate comment on the strikes A makeshift tent camp for displaced Palestinians stretches across Gaza City on Tuesday May AP Photo Jehad Alshrafi Palestinians struggle to get donated food at a region kitchen in Khan Younis Gaza Strip Monday May AP Photo Abdel Kareem Hana Destroyed buildings in the Gaza Strip as seen from southern Israel Tuesday May AP Photo Ohad Zwigenberg Show Caption of A makeshift tent camp for displaced Palestinians stretches across Gaza City on Tuesday May AP Photo Jehad Alshrafi Expand The new bloodshed comes days after Israel approved a plan to intensify its operations in the Palestinian enclave which would include seizing Gaza holding on to captured territories forcibly displacing Palestinians to southern Gaza and taking control of aid distribution along with private assurance companies Israel is also calling up tens of thousands of reserve soldiers to carry out the plan Israel says the plan will be gradual and will not be implemented until after U S President Donald Trump wraps up his visit to the region later this month Any escalation of fighting would likely drive up the death toll And with Israel already controlling specific of Gaza increasing its hold on the territory for an indefinite amount of time could open up the promising for a military occupation which would raise questions about how Israel plans to have the territory governed especially at a time when it is considering how to implement Trump s vision to take over Gaza The Israeli offensive has so far killed more than people in Gaza numerous of them women and children according to Palestinian wellness executives who do not distinguish between combatants and civilians Israel blames Hamas for the death toll saying it operates from civilian infrastructure including schools Hamas has been designated as a terrorist organization by the United States Canada and the European Union Strikes target crowds in Gaza City Wednesday s strikes included two attacks on a crowded arena area in Gaza City fitness administrators announced Footage posted online reportedly displayed the aftermath with men identified dead including one still seated in a chair inside a Thai restaurant used by locals as a gathering spot and several children lying motionless on the ground covered in blood Journalist Yahya Sobeih who freelanced for several local outlets was among those killed according to Gaza s media office He had shared a photo on Instagram of his newborn baby girl Sufferers of the blasts selected with severe injuries were taken to nearby Al-Shifa Hospital Gaza vitality ministry spokesperson Zaher al-Wahidi informed The Associated Press An attack Tuesday night on a school sheltering hundreds of displaced Palestinians killed people authorities from the Al-Aqsa Hospital stated including nine women and three children The school has been struck repeatedly since the war began Earlier a strike on another school turned shelter in Gaza City killed people according to bureaucrats at Al-Ahli Hospital while strikes in other areas killed at least others In Bureij an urban refugee camp paramedics and rescuers rushed to pull people out of a blaze after a large column of smoke and fires pierced the dark skies above the school shelter Trump jars Israelis with remark on hostage figures The war began when Hamas-led terrorists attacked southern Israel killing people and taking about hostages Trump on Tuesday stunned numerous in Israel when he declared that only of the hostages remaining in Gaza are still alive Israel insists the figure stands at although an Israeli official disclosed there was serious concern for the lives of three captives The official declared there has been no sign of life from those three whom the official did not identify He mentioned that until there is evidence proving otherwise the three are considered to be alive The official who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive details related to the war commented the families of the captives were updated on those developments Related Articles Trump says only hostages held by Hamas in Gaza now concluded to be alive An Israeli plan to seize the Gaza Strip is met with alarm Gaza aid dries up as Israeli blockade enters a third month Israel plans to capture all of Gaza under new plan representatives say Drones strike ship carrying aid to Gaza organizers say in latest confrontation over assistance The Hostages and Missing Families Forum a group representing the families of the captives demanded from Israel s ruling body that if there is new information being kept from us give it to us at once It also called for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to halt the war in Gaza until all hostages are returned This is the majority of urgent and major national mission it explained on a post on X Since Israel ended a ceasefire with Hamas in mid-March it has unleashed fierce strikes on Gaza that have killed hundreds and captured swaths of territory Before the truce ended Israel halted all humanitarian aid into the territory including food fuel and water setting off what is presumed to be the worst humanitarian emergency in months of war Key interlocutors Qatar and Egypt mentioned Wednesday that mediation efforts were ongoing and consistent But Israel and Hamas remain far apart on how they see the war ending Israel says it won t end the war until Hamas governing and military capabilities are dismantled something it has failed to do in months of war Hamas says it is prepared to release all of the hostages for an end to the war and a long-term truce with Israel The US-Houthi deal does not appear to cover Israel Against the backdrop of the plans to intensify the campaign in Gaza fighting has also escalated between Israel and Iranian-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen The Houthis fired a ballistic missile earlier this week that landed on the grounds of Israel s main international airport Israel responded with a series of airstrikes over two days whose targets included the airport in Yemen s capital Sanaa The Houthis have been striking Israel and targets in a main Red Sea shipping course since the war began in solidarity with the Palestinians On Tuesday Trump stated the U S would halt a nearly two-monthlong campaign against the Houthis in Yemen after the rebel group agreed not to target U S ships Israel does not appear to be covered by the U S -Houthi agreement The Israeli official revealed the deal came as a surprise to Israel and that it was concerned by it because of what it meant for the continuation of hostilities between it and the Houthis Goldenberg published from Tel Aviv Israel Associated Press reporter Fatma Khaled in Cairo contributed to this review Follow AP s war coverage at https apnews com hub israel-hamas-war