Overview

• Israeli forces opened a ground operation into Gaza City following intense air and artillery strikes, with reports of tanks advancing on multiple fronts and dozens of raids causing civilian casualties and large displacement.
• Israeli media and officials reported that some hostages were moved to surface sites to complicate the assault, and families of captives protested outside Benjamin Netanyahu’s residence alleging the government is risking their lives.
• President Trump warned Hamas against using hostages as human shields and voiced support for Israel’s campaign, while Netanyahu thanked him and Secretary of State Marco Rubio said only days or weeks remain for a negotiated outcome.
• NATO initiated the Eastern Sentry posture in response to drone threats, scrambling French Rafale jets and receiving a UK commitment of two Typhoons for air-defense missions over Poland, as the Kremlin asserted the Alliance is “in fact at war” with Russia.
• Italy’s defense minister Guido Crosetto said the country is not prepared for an external attack and the ministry noted no formal NATO request has arrived to add jets, and Poland announced the arrest of two Belarusians after a drone was intercepted near government buildings.