By WAFAA SHURAFA, SAM METZ and JULIA FRANKEL, Associated Press

GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip (AP) — Israel on Friday declared Gaza’s largest city a dangerous combat zone and said it was in the ″initial stages″ of a planned offensive as grief spread over the return of two hostages’ bodies.

As the military announced the resumption of around-the-clock fighting, aid groups and a church sheltering people said they would stay, refusing to abandon the hungry and displaced who depend on them.

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The shift comes weeks after Israel first announced plans to widen its offensive in Gaza City, where hundreds of thousands of displaced people are sheltering and enduring famine.

The military said it suspended midday pauses to fighting, which had allowed food and aid supplies to enter from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m., while also reporting it had recovered the bodies of two hostages and vowed its military offensive would return more.

Friday’s announcement marks the latest escalation after Israel has reported strikes in some of the city’s key neighborhoods and called up tens of thousands of reservists.

“We will intensify our strikes until we bring back all the kidnapped hostages and dismantle Hamas,” Israeli army spokesperson Avichay Adraee said.

Adraee, the Israeli military’s Arabic-language spokesperson, has for days urged Palestinians in Gaza City to flee south, calling the evacuation “inevitable,” even as aid groups warn of severe obstacles.

Some refuse to leave as Gaza City assault begins

The United Nations said Thursday that 23,000 people had evacuated over the past week, but many Palestinians in Gaza City have said they are exhausted after multiple displacements and questioned leaving when there is nowhere safe and any journey is costly.

The Holy Family Church of Gaza City told The Associated Press on Friday that the roughly 440 people sheltering there would remain along with members of the clergy who would assist them.

Farid Jubran said the church had left the decision up to the people even though they had few recourse to insulate themselves from fighting.

“When we feel danger, people get closer to the walls or whatever, it’s more protected,” he said, noting the church had few specific defenses.

The UN’s humanitarian agency said its staff and NGOs also would remain on the ground.

The group said in a statement that it was “deeply concerned” by the military’s announcement and predicted the offensive would have a “horrific impact on people already exhausted, malnourished, bereaved, displaced, and deprived of basics needed for survival.”

‘Initial stages’ of Gaza City offensive begin

Israel introduced “tactical pauses” in Gaza City, Deir al-Balah and Muwasi last month as it faced global condemnation over the humanitarian conditions in the besieged strip. As it suspended them on Friday in Gaza City, the military did not say whether they had notified residents or aid groups of the impending declaration ahead of the 11:30 a.m. announcement.

Palestinians rush to collect humanitarian aid packages from the United Arab Emirates, airdropped by parachutes into Deir al-Balah, in the central Gaza Strip, Tuesday, Aug. 19, 2025. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)

Norwegian Refugee Council, which coordinates a coalition of aid groups active in Gaza, said it had not received notification that Israel’s “tactical pauses” would be suspended.

Israel has in the past called Gaza City a Hamas stronghold, with a network of tunnels that remain in use by militants after several previous large-scale raids.

The city also is home to some of the territory’s critical infrastructure and health facilities. The United Nations said Thursday the besieged strip could lose half of its hospital bed capacity if Israel invades as planned.

The suspension of the pause also comes one week after the world’s leading food security authority declared Gaza City was being gripped by famine after months of warnings.

Bodies of hostages recovered

Israel on Friday said its military had recovered the bodies of two hostages, including an Israeli man who was killed in the Oct. 7, 2023, terrorist attack that sparked the war.

The bodies of Ilan Weiss of Kibbutz Be’eri and another unnamed hostage were returned to Israel, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks during a press conference at the Prime minister’s office in Jerusalem, Sunday, Aug. 10, 2025. (Abir Sultan/Pool Photo via AP)

“The campaign to return the hostages continues continuously. We will not rest or be silent until we return all of our hostages home — both the living and the dead,” Netanyahu said.

Of the 251 hostages taken by Hamas almost 22 months ago, roughly 50 remain in Gaza including 20 that Israel believes to be alive.

Hamas has been designated as a terrorist organization by the United States, Canada and the European Union.

Israel’s Hostages and Missing Families Forum, which has organized large-scale protests demanding a ceasefire to return the hostages, mourned the losses and said Israeli leaders should prioritize a deal to return both the living and the dead.

“We call on the Israeli government to enter negotiations and stay at the table until every last hostage comes home. Time is running out for the hostages. Time is running out for the people of Israel who carry this burden,” it said in a statement.

Metz and Frankel reported from Jerusalem. Ibrahim Hazboun in Jerusalem and Menelaos Hadjicostis in Nicosia, Cyprus, contributed to this report.

Today is Friday, Aug. 29, the 241st day of 2025. There are 124 days left in the year.

Today in history:

On Aug. 29, 2004, marathoner Vanderlei de Lima was attacked by a spectator during the running of the Olympic marathon in Athens; de Lima, who was leading the race at the time, eventually finished third and received the Pierre de Coubertin medal for sportsmanship in addition to his bronze medal.

Also on this date:

In 1814, during the War of 1812, Alexandria, Virginia, formally surrendered to British military forces, which occupied the city until September 3.

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In 1825, the Treaty of Rio de Janeiro was signed by Portugal and Brazil, officially ending the Brazilian War of Independence.

In 1862, the Bureau of Engraving and Printing began operations at the United States Treasury.

In 1944, 15,000 American troops of the 28th Infantry Division marched down the Champs-Élysées in Paris as the French capital continued to celebrate its liberation from the Nazis.

In 1958, the U.S. Air Force Academy opened in Colorado Springs, Colorado.

In 1966, the Beatles concluded their fourth American tour with their last public concert, held at Candlestick Park in San Francisco.

In 2005, Hurricane Katrina struck the U.S. Gulf Coast in southeast Louisiana, breaching levees and spurring floods that devastated New Orleans. Katrina caused nearly 1,400 deaths and an estimated $200 billion in damage.

In 2008, Republican presidential nominee John McCain picked Sarah Palin, a maverick conservative who had been governor of Alaska for less than two years, to be his running mate.

In 2013, in a sweeping new policy statement, the Justice Department said it would not stand in the way of states that wanted to legalize, tax and regulate marijuana as long as there were effective controls to keep marijuana away from children, the black market and federal property.

In 2021, Hurricane Ida blasted ashore in Louisiana as one of the most powerful storms ever to hit the U.S., knocking out power to all of New Orleans, blowing roofs off buildings and briefly reversing the flow of the Mississippi River.

Today’s Birthdays:

Actor Elliott Gould is 87.
Former U.S. Treasury Secretary Robert Rubin is 87.
Olympic gold medal sprinter Wyomia Tyus is 80.
Olympic gold medal long jumper Bob Beamon is 79.
Animal behaviorist and autism educator Temple Grandin is 78.
Dancer-choreographer Mark Morris is 69.
Actor Rebecca De Mornay is 66.
Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch is 58.
Singer Me’Shell NdegeOcello (n-DAY’-gay-OH’-chehl-oh) is 57.
Actor Carla Gugino is 54.
Actor-singer Lea Michele is 39.
MLB pitcher Noah Syndergaard (SIHN’-dur-gahrd) is 33.

Gophers football coach P.J. Fleck spoke from his heart after the 23-10 season-opening win over Buffalo on Thursday.

His nearly 3-minute opening statement didn’t have anything to do football; he wanted to address the mass shooting that killed two children and injured 18 at Annunciation Catholic Church in south Minneapolis on Wednesday.

“We’ve been through a demonic tragedy over the past few days, and that’s felt by every single person in our city, in our state,” Fleck said. “I’m a husband and a father first, so are our coaches. Our players are sons. And I think I speak for everyone when we say that our thoughts, our hearts, our prayers are with every single family that is going through an unthinkable, horrific tragedy. Unimaginable.”

The Gophers football team discussed the tragedy after the win at Huntington Bank Stadium.

“We said that we’re playing for so many more people than just our locker room and our fans,” Fleck continued. “We’re playing to give hope to people, for maybe a minute.”

Fleck created his “Row the Boat” mantra after the death of his infant son, Colt, passed away to a heart condition in 2011. It remains a part of his program at Minnesota.

“Row The Boat is about putting your oar back in the water and rowing,” Fleck said. “And that’s what this community and the state has always been about. That’s why I have fallen in love, and (my wife) Heather has fallen in love with this community and this state.”

Then Fleck’s voice cracked.

“It’s unthinkable to know what those families are going through,” he continued. “And I’m sure that this doesn’t make anybody feel any better, but I truly hope that we brought a little glimpse of hope with our backs against the wall, to our city where they can excel for a minute and smile with a Gopher football win.”

Fleck stopped short of offering specific solutions to the tragedy.

“I’m not a politician, nor do I act as one, but there’s a lot of things that need to happen and should happen, and we need to hold people accountable to make sure that happens,” he said. “These are our kids. So I’ll leave it at that, and just know that we’re thinking about all of you.”

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Student proficiency levels in math and reading stayed relatively flat since last year, according to results of the Minnesota Comprehensive Assessment tests.

Statewide, 45.2% of students met or exceeded standards in math and 49.6% met or exceeded standards in reading, both slightly down from the previous year.

Last year’s test results showed 45.5% of Minnesota students reached grade-level standards in math, while 49.9% tested as proficient in reading.

Science test results will be released in the fall, after the first year of instruction following newly revised academic standards, according to officials with the state Department of Education.

Consistent attendance rates improved this year and have been trending up since 2022. Statewide, 75.5% of students attended at least 90% of the time in the 2023-2024 school year compared to 74.5% in the 2022-23 school year.

St. Paul Public Schools

In St. Paul Public Schools, students’ overall scores improved slightly from those of last year. About 26.6% of students scored proficient in math and 34.8% were proficient in reading. Last year about 26% scored proficient in math while 34.1% were proficient in reading.

Those percentages are based only on students who take the test and receive a valid score. Students who don’t receive a valid score are those who don’t take the test, including those who opt-out or are absent.

For SPPS, 90% of eligible students tested in math and 92% tested in reading.

“We have seen a slight increase in our reading scores and a slight increase in our math scores,” said Andrew Collins, SPPS executive chief of schools. “It’s also kind of very apparent and clear to us that our focus needs to continue to be on, again, our student outcomes and ensuring that each and every one of our students has a strong academic performance and experience in St. Paul Public Schools and that continues to be our focus and our priority.”

Effort to improve attendance

Meanwhile, in the past school year 12 districts participated in a pilot program to improve attendance and state officials are working with those districts to identify which efforts have been most effective, said Michael Diedrich, an education policy specialist with the state Department of Education.

In addition to increased attendance rates, state officials also saw some small decreases in proficiency gaps between different student demographics.

“We’re seeing faster increases for most of our populations of color, for English learners, for students in special education, students eligible for free and reduced price meals,” Diedrich said. “Similarly, when we look at testing data for many of those groups, we are seeing faster rates of growth for students of color and other groups than we are seeing for the state overall. So we are seeing signs that we’re seeing some small closure of gaps over time.”

Other initiatives

Other ongoing education initiatives include the READ Act, signed into law in 2023, teacher recruitment and retention programs and COMPASS, a statewide system to support schools in areas such special education and English language learning.

The READ Act aims to have all Minnesota children reading at or above grade level every year and to support multilingual learners and students receiving special education services in their individualized reading goals.

Teachers and instructional support staff began receiving reading instruction training in July 2024, with districts requesting training for more than 30,000 teachers as of January.

Third graders included in Friday’s data entered kindergarten prior to the passage of the READ Act, according to state officials.

Students take the reading and math MCA tests in third through eighth grades and once in high school. Science testing is done in fifth and eighth grades and once in high school.