Hundreds of thousands of Palestinians set to flee Gaza City after Israel launches invasion - Israel said it would call up to 60,000 reservists for the new offensive and other heavily populated areas o

Israel said Wednesday its military had entered the first stages of a planned assault on the city, a campaign it begins while clashing publicly with major Western powers.

Hundreds of families from the Zeitoun and Sabra neighbourhoods have already fled, with residents describing “relentless explosions” shaking homes through the night.

A key mediator on Tuesday stressed the urgency of brokering a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip after Hamas showed a “positive response” to a proposal from Arab countries, but Israel has yet to weigh in as its military prepares an offensive in some of the territory's most populated areas.

Palestinians fled parts of Gaza City Thursday after the Israeli military began the first stages of its planned offensive — as officials vowed to completely obliterate the “battered and