Israel's new offensive in Gaza City could take weeks to start, leaving the door open for a ceasefire, officials say, even as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said it would get underway "fairly quickly" and end the war with Hamas' defeat.

A UCLA professor of Israeli studies says Netanyahu does not have an exit plan if IDF troops occupy Gaza’s largest city.

Regional states, including Egypt, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Qatar and Iran, have issued sharp condemnations of Israel's plan to seize Gaza City.