Gaza Strip

An all-out Israeli offensive on the Gaza city of Rafah would provoke "anarchy" without eliminating Hamas, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Sunday, as death toll in the war had exceeded 35,000 people.

Separately, U.S. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan emphasized Washington's concerns about an offensive in a call with his Israeli counterpart, Tzachi Hanegbi.

Israel struck Gaza on Sunday and troops were battling militants in several areas of the Palestinian territory after an Israeli evacuation order sent hundreds of thousands of Palestinians fleeing from Rafah.

Israeli strikes on Saturday hit parts of Gaza including Rafah where Israel expanded an evacuation order and the U.N. warned of "epic" disaster if an outright invasion of the crowded city occurs.

Residents of Rafah in the Gaza Strip are reporting ongoing explosions and gunfire as fierce clashes continue in the area. Israeli tanks have nearly encircled the eastern part of the town, targeting what Israeli intelligence identifies as key Hamas strongholds. The intensifying Israeli offensive has prompted over 110,000 Palestinians to flee Rafah in recent days.

The Eurovision Song Contest final gets underway in Sweden's Malmo on Saturday with thousands of protesters expected to culminate a week of tensions surrounding Israel's participation during the Gaza war.

The United States has issued a stunning criticism of Israel's use of American weapons in the Gaza war, after Israeli forces intensified operations around the southern city of Rafah, where more than a million displaced people are sheltering.

More than 100,000 people have fled Rafah in recent days, the United Nations said on May 10, with Israeli tanks encircling the eastern half of the southern Gaza city, under threat of a full-scale ground invasion.

Israeli airstrikes targeted areas in Rafah on Thursday, as reported by Palestinian residents, while Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu dismissed US President Joe Biden's warning of withholding weapons from Israel if it attacks the southern Gaza city.

The White House has issued a statement affirming President Joe Biden's commitment to maintaining cooperation with Israel until the complete eradication of the radical Palestinian group Hamas from the Gaza Strip, as reported by Reuters.

Israel launched fresh strikes in the Gaza Strip Friday after negotiators pursuing a long-stalled truce agreement left talks in Cairo without having secured a deal.

AFP journalists in the Gaza Strip early Friday witnessed artillery strikes on Rafah on the territory's southern border with Egypt, while witnesses reported air strikes and fighting in Gaza City further north.