Canada, Britain, France threaten action if Israel does not stop military offensive and lift aid restrictions

The leaders of Canada, Britain and France warned on Monday that their countries would take action if Israel does not stop a renewed military offensive in Gaza and lift aid restrictions.

"The Israeli government's denial of essential humanitarian assistance to the civilian population is unacceptable and risks breaching international humanitarian law," a joint statement released by the prime minister's office said.

"We oppose any attempt to expand settlements in the West Bank.... We will not hesitate to take further action, including targeted sanctions."

The statement came after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Monday that Israel would control the whole of Gaza despite mounting international pressure that forced it to lift a blockade on aid supplies that left the enclave on the brink of famine.

"We strongly oppose the expansion of Israel's military operations in Gaza. The level of human suffering in Gaza is intolerable," the three Western leaders said in the joint statement, adding that Israel's announcement it will allow a basic quantity of food into Gaza is "wholly inadequate."

They also stated their support for the efforts led by the United States, Qatar and Egypt for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, and said they were committed to recognizing a Palestinian state as a contribution to achieving a two-state solution.

Netanyahu condemned the joint statement in a post on X and called it "a huge prize for the genocidal attack on Israel on October 7."

The Israeli military, which announced the start of a new operation on Friday, warned residents in the southern city of Khan Younis on Monday to evacuate to the coast immediately as it prepared "an unprecedented attack."

"There is huge fighting going on, intense and huge. We are going to control all parts of Gaza," Netanyahu said in a video message. In it, he pledged to achieve "complete victory" with both the release of the 58 hostages still held by Hamas in Gaza and the destruction of the Palestinian militant group.

Even as the military warned of the attack, Reuters reporters saw aid trucks heading toward northern Gaza after Netanyahu was forced to agree to allow a limited amount of aid into Gaza in response to global concern at the reports of famine.

Netanyahu said U.S. senators he has known for years as supporters of Israel, "our best friends in the world," were telling him the scenes of hunger were draining vital support and bringing Israel close to a "red line, to a point where we might lose control."

"It is for that reason, in order to achieve victory, we have to somehow solve the problem," he said, in a message apparently addressed to far-right hardliners in his government who have insisted aid be denied to Gaza.

The United Nations has long said Gaza needs at least 500 trucks of aid and commercial goods every day. The World Food Program has said more than 116,000 metric tonnes of food – enough to feed one million people for up to four months — was standing ready to be brought in.

However, it remained unclear how much aid would be allowed in and how it would be distributed before the launch of a U.S.-sponsored plan to employ private contractors to distribute aid, which the United Nations and other aid groups have rejected.