By Gbenga Oresanya, he is a beyond-border journalist
A renewed Israeli military offensive in Gaza City has led to a significant escalation in fighting, with medical sources reporting dozens of casualties. Hospitals in the city have received the bodies of at least 42 civilians, with a total of 80 Palestinians killed across the Gaza Strip in a single day, as of September 17, 2025..
Women and children were among at least 20 who died when a strike hit a building and tents sheltering displaced families near Firas market in Gaza City’s central Daraj neighbourhood overnight, according to first responders.
The Israeli military campaign in Gaza City, which began on September 16, marks a new phase of the war. Israeli heavy vehicles, including tanks and bulldozers, are advancing into new neighborhoods, intensifying airstrikes and artillery fire. Witnesses report that the military has been detonating “booby-trapped robots” in residential areas, forcing residents to flee to the south.
The Hamas-run Civil Defence agency said a third of the fatalities were the result of an Israeli strike on a warehouse sheltering displaced people near Firas market, and that six women and nine children were among them.
International journalists, including those from the BBC, are blocked by Israel from entering Gaza independently, so it is difficult to verify the reports.
But video footage from the scene showed people removing a body wrapped in a blanket from the rubble of a destroyed building.
Mohammed Hajjaj, whose relatives were among the dead, told the AFP news agency that the site was hit by “heavy bombing” while people were asleep.
“We came and found children and women torn apart. It was a pitiful sight,” he said.
The renewed offensive has further compounded the humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza:
The few remaining hospitals in central and southern Gaza are being overwhelmed by a “tsunami” of injured and sick patients fleeing the north. Many patients are arriving with old, infected wounds and are malnourished.
Israeli attacks have severely damaged critical infrastructure, including WASH (Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene) facilities. Sewage has overflowed in the streets, and waste management systems have collapsed, leading to serious public health risks.
Hundreds of thousands of Palestinians have been displaced from Gaza City, with many making the arduous journey south on foot. The UN estimates that over 250,000 people have been displaced from Gaza City in the last month.
The humanitarian crisis is so severe that international experts have confirmed that much of northern Gaza is in a state of famine, with a significant number of malnutrition-related deaths.
The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) has warned that the Israeli military’s actions are “inflicting terror on the Palestinian population of Gaza City and forcing tens of thousands to flee.” Several international organizations have also called for an immediate ceasefire and the unhindered delivery of humanitarian aid.
