By Nidal al-Mughrabi
CAIRO (Reuters) – Israeli forces shelled areas of the central Gaza Strip overnight, killing three people and wounding dozens more, medics said, as tanks intensified their invasion of Rafah , in the south, residents said.
Israeli planes struck a house in Al-Nuseirat camp, killing two people and injuring 12 others, while tanks shelled areas of Al-Maghazi and Al-Bureij camps, injuring many other people, health officials said. Nuseirat, Maghazi and Bureij are three of Gaza’s eight historic refugee camps.
In Deir al-Balah, a town populated by displaced people in the central Gaza Strip, an Israeli airstrike killed a Palestinian and injured several others on Thursday, medics said.
The Israeli military said Wednesday that its forces were continuing operations across the enclave, targeting militants and military infrastructure in what it described as “precise, intelligence-driven” activities.
More than eight months after the start of the war in Gaza, Israel’s advance is now focused on the last two areas that its forces have not yet stormed: Rafah, on the southern edge of Gaza, and the area surrounding Deir al-Balah, in the center. The operations have forced more than a million people to flee since May, with the vast majority already displaced from other parts of the enclave.
In Rafah, near the border with Egypt, Israeli tanks stationed deep in the western and central areas of the city intensified their shelling, forcing more families living in the more distant coastal areas to flee north. Some residents said the pace of raids had increased over the past two days.
“Tanks have taken control of most areas of Rafah. Residents living near the beach have also started leaving towards Khan Younis and central areas, frightened by continued shelling,” said resident Abu Wasim. from the Al-Shaboura district of Rafah. , who left his home more than a week ago before the tanks arrived in the heart of the city.
Rafah housed more than half of Gaza’s 2.3 million residents until May 7, when Israeli forces launched the ground offensive on the city. It is estimated that fewer than 100,000 people are now left behind.
There have been no signs of the fighting slowing as efforts by international mediators, backed by the United States, have failed to convince Israel and Hamas to agree to a ceasefire.
The armed wings of Hamas and Islamic Jihad said the fighters fought Israeli forces with anti-tank rockets and mortar shells and in some areas detonated pre-planted explosive devices against Israeli units. the army.
On Thursday, Israeli authorities released 33 Palestinians detained in recent months by Israeli forces in different areas of the enclave. The released detainees were admitted to Al-Aqsa Hospital in Deir Al-Balah, in the central Gaza Strip, after complaining of torture and ill-treatment by Israeli jailers.
Israel denies mistreatment of Palestinian detainees. Palestinian and international human rights groups have criticized what they say is Israel’s mistreatment of Gaza detainees and have repeatedly demanded that it release their whereabouts and information about their well-being.
Israel’s ground and air campaign was triggered when Hamas-led militants stormed into southern Israel on October 7, killing about 1,200 people and taking more than 250 hostages, according to Israeli counts.
The offensive left Gaza in ruins, killed more than 37,400 people, according to Palestinian health authorities, and left almost the entire population homeless and destitute.
Since a week-long truce in November, repeated attempts to establish a ceasefire have failed, with Hamas insisting on an end to the war and a complete Israeli withdrawal from Gaza. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he would only accept temporary pauses and would not end the war until Hamas was eradicated and the hostages were freed.
(Reporting and writing by Nidal al-Mughrabi; editing by Peter Graff)
