Jerusalem, Sept. 16: Israel’s defense minister said Tuesday that “Gaza is burning” after heavy strikes overnight targeted Gaza City. Defense Minister Israel Katz’s remarks come as Israel has been planning a new offensive targeting Gaza City.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, speaking to journalists while leaving Israel for Qatar, suggested the offensive had begun.

“The Israelis have begun to take operations there. So we think we have a very short window of time in which a deal can happen,” Rubio said. “We don’t have months anymore, and we probably have days and maybe a few weeks ago.”

Palestinian residents reported heavy strikes across the city. One strike hit at least three houses in the southwestern side of the city, they said. Medics were searching the rubble for survivors.

“It was a heavy night,” said Radwan Hayder, a Gaza City resident sheltering near the Shifa Hospital.

The Israeli military has not responded to questions for hours over whether the offensive had begun.

Both Netanyahu and Rubio said Monday the only way to end the conflict in Gaza is through the elimination of Hamas and the release of the remaining 48 hostages — around 20 of them believed to be alive — setting aside calls for an interim ceasefire in favor of an immediate end to the conflict.

Hamas has said it will only free the remaining hostages in return for Palestinian prisoners, a lasting ceasefire and an Israeli withdrawal from Gaza.

The war in Gaza began when Hamas-led militants stormed into southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killing around 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducting 251. Most of the hostages have since been released in ceasefires brokered in part by Qatar or other deals.

Israel’s retaliatory offensive has killed at least 64,871 Palestinians, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, which doesn’t say how many were civilians or combatants. The ministry, which is part of the Hamas-run government and staffed by medical professionals, says women and children make up around half the dead.-Agencies