Israel said it had scaled up a ground offensive in northern Gaza as part of an operation to extend so-called "security zones" that provide a protective buffer along the border with Israel.

The order came not long after Palestinian health authorities said dozens of people, including children, were killed in strikes on a school turned shelter. Israel said it was looking into the reports.

Hundreds of thousands of Gazans sought shelter as Israeli forces advanced into the ruins of the city of Rafah.

Demanding an end to the war, hundreds pressed the militants to relinquish control of the enclave, a rare demonstration against a group that has suppressed dissent with violence.

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu could visit the United States as early as next week, President Donald Trump said.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel’s military is “switching gears” in Gaza, dividing and seizing more parts of the strip, a move experts say could mean Israel establishing deeper, more long-term control over the territory.

Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz announced Wednesday a major expansion of the military’s operation in Gaza involving the seizure of large areas of land that would be “incorporated into Israel’s security zones.

Palestinians hold signs at a protest against the war and Hamas in Deir al-Balah, Gaza Strip, Wednesday, March 26, 2025, in a rare show of public anger against the militant group that rules the territory. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana, File)

At least 19 people are reported killed in Jabalia as Israel's PM says it is expanding ground operations to pressure Hamas.