Marco Rubio in Israel as IDF destroys more Gaza urban buildings

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said that US-Israeli relations are “have never been stronger,” as US Secretary of State Marco Rubio is visiting to discuss the Gaza war following Israel’s attack on Hamas in Qatar.

He told reporters that the connection was as strong and “durable as the stones in the west wall” while in the holy place in Jerusalem on Sunday.

Earlier, Rubio said US President Donald Trump was dissatisfied with Israeli strike on the key ally of the United States, but stressed that US and Israel relations were “very strong”.

His visit comes as the Israeli forces continue to destroy Residential buildings in the city of Gaza, forcing thousands to escape before the expected offensive to take over the city.

“Obviously we are not happy about it, the president was not pleased with it. Now we have to move forward and find out what is next,” Rubio said before leaving for Israel.

In his comments on the joint base Andrews, Rubio added that Trump’s priority remains the return of all hostages and the end of the war. Hamas members were in Doha to discuss the US most proposal in the United States to end fire in Gaza when Israel began its strikes.

Asked if the doha strike complicates Qatar’s desire to work with the United States, Rubio answered “They were good partners on a number of fronts.”

Qatar – a key ally of the United States in the region and the location of a large US air base – will host an emergency Arab -Islamic Summit on Monday to discuss the next moves.

Doha condemned Israel’s attack as “cowardly” and “gross violation of international law”. Netanyahu said this move was “fully justified” as it was aimed at senior Hamas leaders who organized the attacks on October 7, 2023.

About 48 Israeli hostages, 20 of whom are thought to remain alive, are kept by Hamas in Gaza. Their families have said Netanyahu is the “one obstacle” preventing them from returning and achieving a peace transaction.

The hostage forum and missing families wrote on social media that Israel’s strike on Qatar showed “Every time the deal approaches, Netanyahu sabotages it.”

Netanyahu’s plan to occupy the city of Gaza has attracted international criticism, with the UN warning a military escalation in an area where hunger will push civilians into “An even Deep Catastrophe.”

Sunday footage, confirmed by the BBC, showed that bombs hitting the Al Cutar Tower. Local officials told Reuters that at least 30 residential buildings had been destroyed. Israel said he had committed five waves of air strikes aimed at more than 500 sites last week, including what they were said to be the intelligence and sniper sites of Hamas, buildings containing tunnel openings and weapons.

Israel demanded the residents of Gaza to leave the city and head south, and on Saturday, Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) said they had evaluated about 250,000 Palestinians who escaped, although hundreds of thousands remain in the area. Hamas urged people not to leave.

Some say they can’t afford to go while others say Southern Gaza is also not safe as Israel has also made air strikes there.

“The bombing has intensified everywhere, and we took off our tents, more than 20 families, we don’t know where to go,” said Musba Al Cafarna, displaced in Gaza, in front of Reuters.

On Sunday, Hamas Health Ministry in Gaza said the bodies of 68 people killed by Israeli military arrived at his hospitals the previous day.

As the UN supported global food security experts confirmed hunger in the city of Gaza on August 22, the ministry said at least 144 people were killed by starvation and malnutrition throughout the territory. Israel said it was expanding its efforts to facilitate the supply of assistance and challenged the data of the Ministry of Health regarding the death related to malnutrition.

The Israeli military launched a campaign in Gaza in response to an attack led by Hamas against South Israel on October 7, which killed about 1,200 people and 251 others were taken hostage.

At least 64,871 people have been killed in Israeli attacks in Gaza since then, according to the health ministry in the territory.