JERUSALEM, September 16 — The skies over Gaza City lit up once again today as Israel intensified its military assault, just hours after US Secretary of State Marco Rubio pledged unwavering American support for Israel’s latest offensive.
Rubio stood shoulder-to-shoulder with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Jerusalem on Sunday, offering Washington’s full backing to Israel’s stated mission: the complete eradication of Hamas. “Israel can count on our unwavering support,” Rubio said, signaling firm alignment with the Netanyahu administration’s hardline stance.
By Monday morning, the human cost of that alignment was being felt across Gaza City. “Heavy, relentless bombing” shook the city, witnesses told AFP, with entire homes reduced to rubble. “We can hear their screams,” said 25-year-old Ahmed Ghazal, speaking through broken signals and heavy static.
According to Mahmud Bassal, spokesperson for Gaza’s civil defence agency, the strikes have not only intensified in Gaza City but have also reached southern Khan Yunis. Just a day earlier, 49 people were reportedly killed in Israeli airstrikes there. “The bombing is still ongoing heavily… and the number of deaths and injuries continues to rise,” Bassal said.
Due to severe media restrictions and the deteriorating situation on the ground, AFP has been unable to independently verify these reports. Still, the numbers are staggering. According to the Gaza Health Ministry, more than 64,900 people, mostly civilians, have been killed in the Israeli campaign since October 2023—a figure the United Nations considers credible.
Rubio’s visit came despite US President Donald Trump recently criticizing Israeli airstrikes in Qatar—one of Washington’s key regional allies and home to the largest US airbase in the Middle East. Yet Rubio dismissed Qatari-led ceasefire efforts and described Hamas as “barbaric animals.” On Tuesday, he is expected to visit Qatar in an attempt to stabilize diplomatic ties.
Meanwhile, the international community inches toward a turning point. France is preparing to lead a United Nations summit where several US allies are expected to recognize Palestinian statehood—a move Netanyahu’s government vocally opposes. Rubio dismissed the effort as “largely symbolic,” while Israeli far-right cabinet members continue to call for full annexation of the West Bank, deepening regional tensions.
While Rubio’s message may have been about solidarity, its impact was felt in the destruction that followed.
In a controversial move, Rubio also attended a ceremony inaugurating a new tunnel beneath Silwan—an occupied Palestinian neighborhood in East Jerusalem—igniting backlash from Palestinians who view such actions as an effort to erase their cultural and physical presence. “Instead of siding with international law, the United States is choosing extremism,” said Fakhri Abu Diab, a 63-year-old community representative in Silwan.
The October 7, 2023, attack by Hamas that sparked the current conflict killed 1,219 people in Israel, according to official figures. Since then, the retaliatory bombardment of Gaza has created a humanitarian catastrophe. The United Nations warns that over one million people are now facing famine in Gaza, though Israel denies these findings.
Rubio also met with families of hostages taken by Hamas—251 people in total, of whom 47 remain in captivity, including 25 believed to be dead.
In the Middle of Conflict, Ordinary Lives Shatter
Behind every headline, statistic, and political statement lies a father searching for his child in the rubble, a mother whispering prayers through dust and debris, and children who no longer know what silence sounds like. The world must reckon with this: no geopolitical alignment, no military objective, no diplomatic posturing should ever justify the normalization of human suffering.
We must remember: every bomb dropped writes a story of loss, every silence from the global community echoes complicity.
Now is not the time to look away.
