GAZA CITY: Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Monday that Israel will “take control” of the whole of Gaza, as the military pressed a newly intensified campaign in the war-ravaged territory.

After Israel announced it would let limited aid into Gaza, the head of the World Health Organization issued a stark warning on the humanitarian crisis in the territory, saying that “two million people are starving”.

On the ground, the Israeli military issued an evacuation call to Gazans in the southern city of Khan Yunis and nearby areas ahead of what it described as an “unprecedented attack”.

The call came after the military announced it had begun “extensive ground operations” in an expanded offensive against Hamas, and following air strikes that rescuers said killed at least 22 people on Monday.

“The fighting is intense and we are making progress. We will take control of all the territory of the Strip,” Netanyahu said in a video posted on Telegram.

Israel earlier this month approved plans for the expanded offensive currently under way and said it was aimed at the “conquest” of Gaza and the displacement of its people. “We will not give up. But in order to succeed, we must act in a way that cannot be stopped,” said Netanyahu.—AFP