Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz has vowed to destroy Gaza City if Hamas did not agree to disarm, release all the remaining hostages in the territory and end the war on Israel's terms.
He warned that the "gates of hell will open upon the heads" of Hamas militants "until they agree to Israel's conditions for ending the war, primarily the release of all hostages and their disarmament.
Writing on social media, Mr Katz added: "If they do not agree - Gaza, the capital of Hamas, will become Rafah and Beit Hanoun," referring to two cities in Gaza largely razed during earlier Israeli operations.
Yesterday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that Israel would immediately resume negotiations for the release of all hostages held in Gaza and an end to the nearly two-year-old war but on terms acceptable to Israel.
It was his first response to a temporary ceasefire proposal put forward by Egypt and Qatar that Hamas accepted on Monday. Israel will dispatch negotiators to talks once a location is set, an Israeli official said.
Meanwhile, a global hunger monitor has determined that famine has struck an area of Gaza and will likely spread over the next month.
The assessment will escalate pressure on Israel to allow more aid into the Palestinian enclave.
The Integrated Food Security Phase Classification system said 514,000 people - nearly a quarter of Palestinians in Gaza - are experiencing famine and that was due to rise to 641,000 by the end of September.
Thousands of Palestinians have left their homes as Israeli tanks have edged closer to Gaza City over the last ten days.
Israel's plan to seize Gaza City was approved this month by the security cabinet, which Mr Netanyahu chairs, even though many of Israel's closest allies have urged the government to reconsider.
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In a sign of growing despair at conditions in Gaza, residents staged a rare show of protest against the war yesterday.
Carrying banners reading "Save Gaza, enough" and "Gaza is dying by the killing, hunger and oppression," hundreds of people rallied in Gaza City in a march organised by several civil unions.
"This is for a clear message: words are finished, and the time has come for action to stop the military operations, to stop the genocide against our people and to stop the massacres taking place daily," said Palestinian journalist Tawfik Abu Jarad during the protest.
Israel's plans to expand the fighting and seize Gaza City have sparked an international outcry as well as domestic opposition.
On Wednesday, the military called up 60,000 reservists in a sign the government was pressing ahead with the plan, despite international condemnation. Such a call-up is likely to take weeks.
Mr Netanyahu is under pressure from some far-right members of his coalition to reject a temporary ceasefire and instead to continue the war and pursue the annexation of the territory.
Hamas's 7 October 2023 attack on Israel resulted in the deaths of 1,219 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official figures.
Israel's offensive has killed more than 62,000 Palestinians, most of them civilians, according to figures from the health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza that the United Nations considers reliable.
Accreditation: AFP/Reuters
