Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has approved the takeover of Gaza City by the Israel Defense Force and called for negotiating the release of hostages.

The determination comes after months of warnings by aid groups that Israel’s restrictions of food and other aid into Gaza were causing starvation among Palestinian civilians.

Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz warned that Gaza city could "turn into Rafah and Beit Hanoun" unless Hamas agrees to Israel's terms.

A whistleblower claims World Food Programme and U.N. agencies rejected Israeli security assistance, blocking aid distribution to Gaza despite available supplies as U.N. dismisses accusations.

The Israeli military maintained its pressure on Gaza City with heavy bombardments overnight, residents said, ahead of a Thursday meeting between Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his ministers on plans to seize the enclave's largest city.

United Nations Secretary-General says famine in Gaza City is a 'failure of humanity'

Israel is intensifying airstrikes in neighborhoods on the outskirts of Gaza City, raising alarm among residents as the Israeli security cabinet plans to meet Thursday to formally approve plans that would expand the war in Gaza.