US President Donald Trump urged Israel on Friday 3 October to stop its bombing of Gaza right away on X, after Hamas agreed to release hostages and accept parts of a U.S.-brokered proposal to end the war.
“Israel must immediately stop the bombing of Gaza, so that we can get the Hostages out safely and quickly!…We are already in discussions on details to be worked out. This is not about Gaza alone, this is about long sought PEACE in the Middle East.” Trump wrote on social media.
Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office stated that Israel was getting ready to carry out the initial phase of Trump’s Gaza plan, which focuses on the release of Israeli hostages, following Hamas’ response.
Despite Trump’s call for a ceasefire, bombings in Gaza were reported within the past 24 hours. The Israeli military has also reiterated warnings to Gaza City residents, emphasizing that the area remains a highly dangerous combat zone. Despite some earlier reports suggesting a possible reduction in Israeli operations, Colonel Avichay Adraee, the military’s Arabic-language spokesperson, stated on Saturday that Israeli forces are still active in the city.
“The IDF troops are still operating in Gaza City, and returning to it is extremely dangerous. For your safety, avoid returning north or approaching areas of IDF troop activity anywhere, including in the southern Gaza Strip,” Colonel Avichay Adraee wrote on X.
According to Gaza’s civil defense, dozens of Israeli airstrikes and artillery attacks hit Gaza City and other parts of the Strip overnight. Civil defense spokesperson Mahmud Bassal described it as “a very violent night,” with casualties reported in multiple areas. Four civilians were killed in a strike on a home in Gaza City, and two others in Khan Younis in southern Gaza, local authorities announced.
The Palestinian Ministry of Health in Gaza reported that Israeli attacks have killed at least 66 people in the past 24 hours.
Since the escalation that began on 7 October, 2023, the cumulative death toll in Gaza has surpassed 67,074 according to Gaza’s health ministry. In August 2025, a joint statement by the UN’s FAO, UNICEF, WHO, and WFP confirmed that famine has now been officially declared in Gaza, with over half a million people trapped in catastrophic food insecurity and hunger-induced mortality.
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