Israeli forces destroyed at least 30 homes in Gaza City. This forced thousands of people to leave their homes. The action comes as US Secretary of State Marco Rubio arrived to talk about the conflict’s future.
Israel wants to take control of Gaza City. About one million Palestinians live there as refugees. Israel says this helps end Hamas. Attacks have grown stronger. They call Gaza City Hamas’s last base.
On Tuesday, Israel hit Hamas leaders in Doha, Qatar. The airstrike drew anger from many. Hamas has talked about a ceasefire and hostage deal. Qatar will host an Arab-Islamic summit on Monday to plan the next steps.
Rubio said the US wants to free 48 hostages in Gaza. Only 20 are thought to be alive. He met Qatar’s prime minister on Friday. Rubio will stay in Israel until Tuesday. He plans to talk with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. “What’s happened has happened,” Rubio said. “We’re gonna talk about what the future holds.”
Watch: This is the moment Israeli strikes hit a multi-story building in Gaza City.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio arrived in Israel on Sunday as the IDF stepped up attacks on northern Gaza. pic.twitter.com/wMZlRPwFCw
— DW News (@dwnews) September 14, 2025Rubio visited the Western Wall in Jerusalem. The State Department called it a sign of US support for Jerusalem as Israel’s capital. This echoes Donald Trump’s 2017 move of the US embassy there.
UNRWA’s Philippe Lazzarini said the agency stopped services at a key clinic in Gaza. It’s the only health care north of Wadi Gaza. Water and sanitation are at half strength. Ten UNRWA buildings were hit in Gaza City in four days.
US officials called Tuesday’s Qatar strike a bad move. It hurts US and Israeli goals. Netanyahu approved a West Bank settlement plan on Thursday. The UAE warned it could harm the Abraham Accords, which normalised ties with Israel.
Marco Rubio and Mike Huckabee prayed at the Wailing Wall in Jerusalem alongside Prime Minister Netanyahu.
Follow: @AFpost pic.twitter.com/mEz9RlfCtb
— AF Post (@AFpost) September 14, 2025Aid groups say taking Gaza City would hurt the area badly. Two more Palestinians died from hunger in the last day. The total is now 422, including 145 children. Israel blocked food for 11 weeks earlier this year. More aid has come since July, but the UN says it’s not enough.
Israel tells people to leave Gaza City before more troops enter. Tens of thousands have gone, but hundreds of thousands stay. Hamas urges them to remain. Many people fear there is no safe space in the south. Displaced resident Musbah al-Kafarna said, “The bombardment intensified everywhere. We took down the tents. We do not know where to go.”
Read: Former Israeli Soldier’s Gaza Video Game Sparks Controversy
Israel finished five airstrike waves last week. They hit over 500 sites, like Hamas tunnels and weapon stores. Hamas says Israel destroyed 1,600 homes and 13,000 tents since August 11. The war, now nearly two years long, has killed over 64,000 in Gaza, per local reports. It started with Hamas’s October 7, 2023, attack that killed 1,200 and took 251 hostages.
