this is bbc news. the headlines — explosions over gaza as the israeli military ramps up its air and ground operations. translation: the ground forces are spending this evening, acting forcefully in all die mentions to achieve the goals of the war. . . , die mentions to achieve the goals of the war. . ., , ., , die mentions to achieve the goals of the war. . . , ., , ., , , die mentions to achieve the goals of the war. . ., .,, ., , , ., the war. hamas has fired a series of rockets towards _ the war. hamas has fired a series of rockets towards southern _ the war. hamas has fired a series of rockets towards southern israel, - rockets towards southern israel, too. this escalation comes as the un general assembly voted to adopt a resolution, put forward by arab

countries, calling for an immediate humanitarian truce. welcome to the programme. let's take you live straight away to gaza. we have these pictures of the gaza sky. it is dark they are because of the time, but also because electricity power on the buildings is not on. what we have been seeing in these pictures over the last couple of hours is flashes of orange as israel intensifies its air strikes. it announced a ramping up of strikes from the airand announced a ramping up of strikes from the air and its operations on the ground. many around the world are asking is this the ground incursion, the major operation? at this point, wejust don't incursion, the major operation? at this point, we just don't know. incursion, the major operation? at this point, wejust don't know. what we do know is that communication lines are cut in gaza right now.

let's take you to some other life feeds that we have. this is southern israel. hamas is launching rockets from gaza into israel, too. and we can take you inside gaza now. this is a hospital there. we have seen an ambulance outside, but other than that, pretty, the moment. the idf again asking people in gaza to move from the north down to the south. khan younis is in the south, but there been strikes there, too. not much aid getting in. just ten trucks of aid getting in today. lastly, the last live feed that i want to keep your cross. it's the israel — gaza border. we have a view of that from israel. you can understand it is dark there, but those are the live

feeds of pictures that we are keeping across as the hours tick by since the idf announced their expansion of ground operation, its intensification of air strikes. it says it is targeting hamas's underground network. it is targeting terrorist infrastructure in gaza. that is according to the idf. just a little earlier, we saw some pretty intense explosions over gaza. take a look at these pictures. our teams on the ground in southern israel noticed the intensification before the idf announcement came on, that confirmation came. these are some of the images from just a little earlier. you can see the velocity of those air strikes. let's get the latest from our middle east correspondent tom bateman.

there has been intense bombardment by the israelis, the heaviest we've seen at night—time. and we heard from daniel hajari, the israeli military spokesman, in a live televised address to israelis that he said that they were widening their ground operations. he talked about this being what he called a very significant attack against underground networks of hamas, he said, and also terrorist infrastructure, as he described it. now, one of the first signs that something significant was taking place here was that all communications for ordinary palestinians in gaza went dark. there was a complete blackout. and remember, this is on top of more than two weeks of a complete, complete cut of the electricity grid in gaza.

now, i mean, i had tried for hours to reach people in gaza. a message i sent at about 640 local time in the evening via whatsapp a message i sent at about 6.40 local time in the evening via whatsapp just remained for hours and hours unreceived by the phone it was sent to. i couldn't get through via mobile phone network, messaging apps to people. there is, it seems, some very limited communications for people in gaza. if they have sim cards from foreign operators, turkish or egyptian, that can reach the masts of egypt we can speak to matthew schmidt — a military and security analyst. thank you very much for coming on the programme. what's your analysis, giving the information we have, the idf announcing that intensification

of ground and air operations? i think it's like general kemp said. we won't know about it before the military... to exploit the enemy's uncertainty. if we are choosing, this lets the idf maintain what's called operational tempo. it's like a sports analogy. it's like your football team pushing the other team to react to you and you driving the gameplay, and that's really what we see in this shaping operation. just talk us through what 's are some of talk us through what �*s are some of the calculation as to why now this intensification? i the calculation as to why now this intensification?— intensification? i think is mostly olitical intensification? i think is mostly political on _ intensification? i think is mostly political on the _ intensification? i think is mostly political on the end _ intensification? i think is mostly political on the end of— intensification? i think is mostly political on the end of israel. i political on the end of israel. netanyahu has to do something. he's responding to a terrible attack, and he's got to do something now because it's an unfortunate term, but the optics look really bad. in addition,

there is a strategic risk in waiting. you're looking at some ,000 citizens killed already, 3,000 of which were under 18. there been some babies that have been killed. it's important to that military violence, killing people has to have a reasonable political end state if it's going to be moral, and that's the question that israel is really facing — whether or not their tactical approach to the bombing and bringing in this ground operation is actually going to be effective. and those civilian deaths affect that effectiveness. they matter. we've not the effectiveness. they matter. we've got the allies. _ effectiveness. they matter. we've got the allies, many _ effectiveness. they matter. we've got the allies, many allies - effectiveness. they matter. we've got the allies, many allies of - got the allies, many allies of israel at the moment, absolutely defending israel's right to defend

itself. but also saying more has rules. how do you, from a strategic basis, go into presumably the north of gaza and take out these tunnels, take out the infrastructure and not hurt civilians? you take out the infrastructure and not hurt civilians?— hurt civilians? you don't. this is an absolutely — hurt civilians? you don't. this is an absolutely impossible - hurt civilians? you don't. this is l an absolutely impossible situation for the idf. i understand the urge to act. you can win every tactical engagement with hamas and still lose the war. if the united states has proven that. hamas remember engaged in this horrific terrorism precisely in this horrific terrorism precisely in order to incite a reaction from israel. it's getting what it wanted. hamas is no protector of the palestinian people. hamas is using

them in this situation, and it is bringing upon its own people the wrath of the idf. that's what they want, that's how they win, that's how they create world recruits. remember the most thousands are underfour remember the most thousands are under four years old. remember the most thousands are underfour years old. when remember the most thousands are under four years old. when you talking about these numbers of death, the question is what happens at the end? how does this thing end? do you have a gaza now with a population? doesn't provide security for israel? what happens now? what happens now you don't push all the gods and out? will you have a population that's going to accept sovereignty? —— all the thousands of. sovereignty? -- all the thousands of. ., ~ , of. matthew schmidt, thank you very much for that- _ of. matthew schmidt, thank you very much for that. we're _ of. matthew schmidt, thank you very much for that. we're going _ of. matthew schmidt, thank you very much for that. we're going to - of. matthew schmidt, thank you very much for that. we're going to take i of. matthew schmidt, thank you very much for that. we're going to take a| much for that. we're going to take a look at life inside gaza. the head the united nations has warned that the humanitarian situation in the territory is facing total collapse — with "unimaginable consequences" for the 2 million people living there,

unless israel lets more aid in immediately. our special correspondent fergal keane reports now on the plight of people in gaza. the processions are constant now. and grief follows with them. these, some of the last images from gaza... ..before links were lost tonight to the world outside. the displaced seat shelter anywhere they can. the displaced seek shelter anywhere they can. confined in a place the un says is becoming a hell. samira nurala is exhausted. "you can see the pain we live in. "my husband suffers from a stroke. "i plead to the whole world to look

at the palestinian people "with a merciful eye." samira is from a refugee family. newsreel: a few pitiful refugees - rescue what few belongings they can. like many palestinians whose children and grandchildren were born in refugee camps. for nearly 75 years, the un has been working to meet their welfare needs of palestinian refugees. so, if we look back over our shoulders, this is a timeline... today, as events built towards a ground attack, its representatives called for a ceasefire. what's happening now in gaza isjust a horrific slaughter. 2.2 million people, in a tiny patch of land, it's called of land — it's called the strip for a reason — it's 45 kilometres long by about 20 at its largest point. so it's a strip and there's nowhere for those people to go, there's nowhere for them to flee. many have tried to find sanctuary in schools.

all teaching has stopped in gaza. generations are crowded together here. still, the customary civilities are observed. fatima shaat was also displaced in 19118. gaza back then was a refuge. today, it is a trap. translation: it's very hard. i live next to the toilets. i'm very sick. and more than 13 members of my family have been killed. there's not much in life she hasn't seen or any choice about what she must now endure. in the hours before what israel called tonight's unprecedented attacks, samira comforted the children — caught in a place they cannot leave. fergal keane, bbc news, jerusalem.

we can speak to mohammed taha from bbc arabic. we feared about this loss of communication inside gaza, so what do we know about that? we hired so what do we know about that? - hired officials from red cross who confirmed that they lost any communications with their crews in gaza. the un also have crews inside gaza. the un also have crews inside gaza. they lost communication with their officials, with their bosses outside. we understand the situation is happening at the moment and gaza. lots of communication, total darkness, intensified shelling on gaza and this, the start of a kind of... at the moment, it is limited

incursion inside gaza, it really escalated situation. [30 incursion inside gaza, it really escalated situation.— incursion inside gaza, it really escalated situation. do we know any if --eole escalated situation. do we know any if people had — escalated situation. do we know any if people had an _ escalated situation. do we know any if people had an idea _ escalated situation. do we know any if people had an idea in _ escalated situation. do we know any if people had an idea in gaza that. if people had an idea in gaza that this was coming, that the intensification of the air strikes was there? i intensification of the air strikes was there?— intensification of the air strikes was there? ,, , .,, ., was there? i guess people in gaza were expecting — was there? i guess people in gaza were expecting that _ was there? i guess people in gaza were expecting that because - was there? i guess people in gaza were expecting that because the l was there? i guess people in gaza l were expecting that because the idf were expecting that because the idf were sending lots of messages by aeroplanes, paper messages and the warnings everywhere that they have to move south. they were expecting that land incursion to happen. and those cuts would not happen anytime soon. but in the middle of this intensified attack and shelling on gaza, all the scenarios for these civilians are open. find gaza, all the scenarios for these civilians are open.— gaza, all the scenarios for these civilians are open. and this issue of aid, if i _ civilians are open. and this issue of aid, if! can— civilians are open. and this issue of aid, if i can ask _ civilians are open. and this issue of aid, if i can ask about, - civilians are open. and this issue

of aid, if i can ask about, we - civilians are open. and this issue of aid, ifi can ask about, we had of aid, if i can ask about, we had a couple of hours or so from the white house that the figure of ten aid trucks are getting into gaza when they did hundreds.— trucks are getting into gaza when they did hundreds. yeah, aid is very limited, they did hundreds. yeah, aid is very limited. and — they did hundreds. yeah, aid is very limited. and it— they did hundreds. yeah, aid is very limited, and it is _ they did hundreds. yeah, aid is very limited, and it is not _ they did hundreds. yeah, aid is very limited, and it is not effective. - limited, and it is not effective. not much effective. we understand from the people inside gaza who we interviewed that lots of this aid might be supplies that they want more of it or they want different supplies of this aid. it is very limited. they are 2 million civilians in this strip who are out of water, out of food, out of power. as you said earlier, they simply voted for humanitarian truth. this is what's really needed, a truce, a