Palestinians reported the heaviest bombardments in weeks on Monday in areas east of Gaza City, just hours after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he expected to complete a new expanded offensive in the enclave "fairly quickly".

An Israeli airstrike on Sunday also killed prominent Al Jazeera journalist Anas Al Sharif, who had previously been threatened by Israel, along with four colleagues, in an attack condemned by journalists and rights groups. The Israeli military said Al Sharif was "the head of a terrorist cell."

Witnesses said Israeli tanks and planes pounded Sabra, Zeitoun, and Shejaia, three eastern suburbs of Gaza City in the north of the territory, on Monday, pushing many families out of their homes westwards.

Some Gaza City residents said it was one of the worst nights in weeks, raising fears of military preparations for a deeper offensive into their city, which according to Palestinian militant group Hamas is now sheltering about 1 million people after the displacement of residents from the enclave's northern edges.

The Israeli military said its forces fired artillery at Hamas militants in the area. There was no sign on the ground of forces moving deeper into Gaza City as part of the newly approved Israeli offensive, which is not expected to begin in the coming weeks.

"It sounded like the war was restarting," said witness Amr Salah, 25. "Tanks fired shells at houses, and several houses were hit, and the planes carried what we call fire rings, whereby several missiles landed on some roads in eastern Gaza," he said.

The Israeli military said its forces on Sunday dismantled a launch site east of Gaza City, which Hamas used to fire rockets towards Israeli communities across the border.

Speed up

Netanyahu on Sunday said he had instructed the Israeli military to speed up its plans for the new offensive.

"I want to end the war as quickly as possible, and that is why I have instructed the IDF (Israel Defense Forces) to shorten the schedule for seizing control of Gaza City," he said.

Netanyahu said the new offensive will focus on Gaza City, which he described as Hamas' "capital of terrorism". He also pointed to a map and indicated that the coastal area of central Gaza may be next, saying Hamas militants have been pushed there too.

The new plans have raised alarm abroad. On Friday, Germany, a key European ally, announced it would halt exports of military equipment to Israel that could be used in Gaza. Britain and other European allies urged Israel to reconsider its decision to escalate the Gaza military campaign.

Journalists killed

Five Al Jazeera journalists were killed by an Israeli airstrike on their tent at the Al Shifa Hospital compound.

Israel's military said it targeted and killed Anas Al Sharif – who it had previously threatened – alleging he had headed a Hamas cell and was involved in rocket attacks against Israel. Al Jazeera rejected the claim, and before his death the 28-year-old had also rejected earlier claims by Israel that he was connected to Hamas.

Calling Al Sharif "one of Gaza's bravest journalists," Al Jazeera said the attack was a "desperate attempt to silence voices in anticipation of the occupation of Gaza."

The other Al Jazeera journalists killed included Mohammed Qreiqeh, Ibrahim Zaher and Mohammed Noufal. Local freelance reporter, A fiftth journalist, Mohammad Al-Khaldi, also died in the airstrike, medics at Al Shifa Hospital said on Monday. An official at the hospital said two other people were also killed.

Al Sharif was previously part of a Reuters team which in 2024 won a Pulitzer Prize in the category of Breaking News Photography for coverage of the Israel-Hamas war.

The Israeli military said in a statement that Al Sharif was the head of a Hamas cell and "was responsible for advancing rocket attacks against Israeli civilians and IDF (Israeli) troops," citing intelligence and documents found in Gaza as evidence.

Journalists' groups and Al Jazeera denounced the killings. Press freedom campaign group Reporters Without Borders (RSF) condemned what it called an "acknowledged murder by the Israeli army," and called the Israeli claims "baseless".

RSF says almost 200 journalists have been killed in the conflict since October 7, 2023. It has filed four complaints against Israel at the International Criminal Court for alleged "war crimes committed against journalists in Gaza".

"In (Sunday's) deliberate attack, the Israeli army reproduced a known method already tested, notably against al-Jazeera journalists," RSF said, pointing to the killings of two reporters on July 31 last year.

The war between Israel and Hamas in Gaza is the deadliest on record for journalists, according to the Watson Institute for International and Public Affairs' Costs of War project. The Committee to Protect Journalists said at least 186 journalists have been killed in the Gaza conflict.

Al Jazeera said Al Sharif had left a social media message to be posted in the event of his death that read: "...I never hesitated to convey the truth as it is, without distortion or misrepresentation, hoping that God would witness those who remained silent."