Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Thursday he will give final approval for the takeover of Gaza City while also restarting negotiations with Hamas aimed at returning all the remaining hostages and ending the war on Israel's terms.

GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip (AP) — Israel’s defense minister warned Friday that Gaza’s largest city would be destroyed unless Hamas yields to Israel’s terms, as the world’s leading authority on food crises said the city was gripped by famine from fighting and blockade.

Famine is officially declared in the governorate that includes Gaza City. No additional detainees will be allowed in “Alligator Alcatraz” after a judge’s ruling. And Serena Williams opens up about her decision to take a GLP-1 medication after struggling to lose weight with diet and exercise.

Soon, the gates of hell will open upon the heads of Hamas’s murderers and rapists in Gaza – until they agree to Israel’s conditions for ending the war” Defense

The military called up tens of thousands of reservists as the government considered a ceasefire proposal to pause nearly two years of war.

Israel said its military had entered the first stages of a planned assault on the city, a campaign it begins while clashing publicly with major Western powers.

A key mediator on Tuesday stressed the urgency of brokering a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip after Hamas showed a “positive response” to a proposal from Arab countries, but Israel has yet to weigh in as its military prepares an offensive in some of the territory's most populated areas.

Israel's defence minister approved a plan on Wednesday for the conquest of Gaza City and authorised the call-up of around 60,000 reservists, piling pressure on Hamas as mediators push for a ceasefire.