The Israeli army says fighting continues in the city of Khan Yunis, in the south of the Gaza Strip. The military said Saturday that three Palestinians were killed in an airstrike that planted explosives near Israeli forces. Soldiers also killed “numerous armed terrorists at close range.”
In another incident in the largest city in the southern part of the coastal strip, seven people fired rocket grenades at the army. They were also attacked and killed.
According to eyewitnesses, thousands of people have fled Khan Yunis in recent days due to fierce fighting. The city is considered a stronghold of Islamic Hamas. Israel suspects the terrorist organization's leadership, as well as Israeli hostages, to be in the network of tunnels beneath the area.
Due to the many victims and the great suffering of the civilian population in the Gaza Strip, there is much international criticism of the army's actions. The war was triggered by the brutal massacre carried out by Hamas and other extremist groups in Israel on October 7 last year.
Hamas and other extremist groups still occasionally fire rockets at Israel. According to the army, rocket alarms were sounded again in southern Israel on Saturday. According to Israeli media reports, a bullet landed outside the Israeli town of Sderot, which is near the Gaza Strip.
The Hamas-controlled health authority in the Gaza Strip accused Israel of targeting soldiers in the vicinity of Al-Amal Hospital. It is the largest medical facility still operating in the south. In addition, the Nasser Hospital, which is also located at the site, was hit by bullets. The lives of doctors, patients and refugees are in danger.
The Israeli military says it is in telephone contact with hospital managers and medical personnel to ensure that hospitals are functioning. Israel accuses Hamas of using hospitals as military positions.
Residents and Hamas militants also reported fighting in the central and northern parts of the Gaza Strip on Saturday. In Rafah, where more than half the population of the Gaza Strip sought shelter in shelters and tents, an airstrike killed three people in a house, according to the health authority. Displaced people and refugees were also affected by the heavy rains.
In the occupied West Bank, a man was killed in a shootout with Israeli forces near Jenin, residents reported.