TEHRAN – The Israeli occupation forces (IOF) escalate the genocide in Gaza as the regime’s infantry is invading the coastal enclave from several fronts, along with relentless bombardments. 

Rescue teams are struggling to recover the bodies of Palestinians buried beneath the rubble. Reports state that “civil defense crews are unable to reach destroyed homes due to intense shelling.” 

This escalation follows the Israeli regime’s announcement of a new ground invasion. Reporters on the ground confirm that the IOF invaders are advancing across both previously targeted and new areas. 

These include Rafah (southern Gaza), which the IOF has fully seized; the east of Deir al-Balah (central Gaza), where they captured a hill; and neighborhoods east of al-Tuffah and Shejaiya in northern Gaza.
The IOF is also deploying military vehicles and booby-trapped robots north of Beit Lahia and east of Jabalia (Northern Gaza). 

On Saturday, an IOF spokesperson announced the launch of the first phase of “Operation Gideon’s Chariots,” which involves heavy airstrikes and coordinated troop movements. The operation aims to seize territory and fulfill the regime’s stated “objectives of the war”, including the elimination of the Palestinian Resistance and the retrieval of captives. 

The new wave of genocidal campaign comes as the humanitarian catastrophe in the besieged enclave has reached new levels. 

According to the Palestinian Ministry of Health in Gaza, “153 martyrs (including 7 recovered martyrs) and 459 injuries arrived at Gaza Strip hospitals over the past 24 hours (noon time on Saturday).” 

Many victims remain trapped under the rubble and on roads, unreachable by ambulances or civil defense crews. Eyewitnesses described a “night of terror,” marked by indiscriminate IOF strikes. 

Following the Health Ministry’s daily briefing on casualties resulting from the U.S.-backed genocide, the IOF committed another massacre by bombing a densely populated residential area in the Jabalia Camp. A significant number of people are reported dead or missing. 

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres expressed alarm over the expansion of the Israeli ground invasion. Speaking at an Arab League summit in Baghdad on Saturday, he stated, “We need a permanent ceasefire, now. I am alarmed by reported plans by Israel to expand ground operations and more.” 

Despite UN warnings of an imminent famine, the regime continues to block humanitarian aid into Gaza. UN aid chief Tom Fletcher urged the Security Council to act to “prevent genocide” in a territory where aid deliveries have been blocked for 75 days. 

UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk condemned the Israeli attacks, declaring them tantamount to “ethnic cleansing.” 

Turk stated, “The recent relentless bombardment… and the denial of humanitarian aid confirm an intent to bring about permanent demographic change in Gaza, which violates international law and constitutes ethnic cleansing.” 

For 20 months, the regime in Tel Aviv has sought to occupy the Strip. Yet despite repeatedly reoccupying large portions of the enclave, none of its declared objectives, including eliminating the Palestinian resistance fighters and recovering Israeli captives, have been achieved. 

Critics accuse the Netanyahu government of prolonging the genocide to maintain its grip on power.