ISRAELI OCCUPIED AND STARVED GAZA, 22 Sept. - (ANA) - Civilians continued to flee Israel's relentless assault on Gaza City on Monday as world leaders prepared to discuss recognising a Palestinian state in New York.

 

At least 15 people had been killed by Israeli forces on Monday morning, including seven in Gaza City, according to medical sources in the Strip.

 

Shelling was reported in the Sabra neighhourhood, killing and wounding several people.

 

This came as France and Saudi Arabia prepared to convene a gathering at the UN General Assembly to build international momentum towards a two-state solution.

 

At least six countries are expected to formally recognise a Palestinian state during the UN session, following the UK, Canada, Australia, and Portugal, which took the step on Sunday.

 

The move by Israel's close allies has triggered fury from across the Israeli political spectrum.

 

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu – wanted by the International Criminal Court for war crimes and crimes against humanity – issued a veiled threat to respond, potentially alluding to his government's ambitions to annex swathes of the occupied West Bank.

 

The Israeli military has mounted a brutal offensive to seize control of Gaza City over the past two months in defiance of the international community and a growing chorus of voices accusing it of genocide.

 

Tens of thousands of people have been forcibly displaced due to the offensive. Israeli forces have razed several suburbs to the ground and levelled dozens of high-rise residential buildings in what appears to be a systematic campaign of destruction.

 

Israel wants to displace the north's estimated one million residents to the south before seizing control of the entire area.

 

Tanks, ground troops, and armoured vehicles laden with explosives began to move into the dense urban area last week.

 

A UN inquiry last week found that Israel is committing genocide against the Palestinians in Gaza, joining a host of human rights organisations, genocide scholars, and governments who have reached the same conclusion.

 

 

 

 

Israel has recently destroyed multiple high-rise buildings in Gaza City, accusing Hamas of putting surveillance infrastructure in them.

 

 

 

 

France is trying to gather international backing for a multinational peacekeeping force that would replace Israeli forces in Gaza and disarm Hamas.

 

A draft of the proposal, as seen by The Times of Israel, advocates setting up a UN peacekeeping force that could potentially be deployed on the ground before a ceasefire is reached.

 

It lays out a two-phase plan that would see troops help to stabilise the situation on the ground and gradually disarm Hamas before helping to build new institutions for a future Palestinian state.

 

The mission would be backed financially by voluntary donations, including from Gulf countries.

 

The plan is based on the declaration drawn up by France and Saudi Arabia in July that aims to provide a roadmap towards the two-state solution.

 

The declaration received overwhelming global backing at the UN General Assembly earlier this month.

 

It would see control of Gaza gradually handed over to the Palestinian Authority, whose presence in the territory has been vociferously rejected by Israel.

 

The far-right Netanyahu government is unlikely to cooperate with the initiative and instead pursue its ambitions of expelling the Palestinians and annexing the territory for Jewish settlement.   - (ANA) -

 

AB/ANA/22 September 2025 - - -