Gaza City: The military said Friday that Israeli forces launched a ground offensive in Gaza City, expanding their operations as rescuers reported at least 30 people had been killed in Palestinian territory since the dawn.
Israel also escalated its attack on Lebanon, killing commander Hamas hours after a pre-dawn strike that struck the port city of Sidon before dawn.
In Gaza, Israeli troops said ground forces in the Shuya area “a secure zone established by the army within the Palestinian territory”.
Elena Helles told AFP via text message that her family was trapped in her sister’s home in Shujaiya.
AFPTV video shows others fleeing the area after the Israeli evacuation order.
Civil Defense Agency said Israel’s Gaza military operation killed at least 30 people on Friday.
A strike against Khan Yuni killed at least 25 people, a medical source at the South City Nasser Hospital told AFP.
Ahmed Al-Aqqad’s family owned the bombed buildings, told AFP that more bodies might be buried “under rubble, but we cannot take them out due to the lack of necessary equipment.
“We call on the whole world to stand together and stop the bleeding,” Diaa al-Aqqad said.
“Our children can’t be found”
Defense Minister Katz said on Wednesday that the military will strengthen its presence in Gaza to relate to militants and “destroy…terrorist infrastructure” where unspecified “large areas” are to be “incorporated into Israeli security zones.”
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the army was splitting Gaza and “grab the territory” and forced Hamas to release the remaining Israeli hostages captured in the October 2023 attack, triggering a war.
Of the 251 people kidnapped in Hamas’ attack on Israel, 58 were held hostages in Gaza, including 34 deaths.
Hamas’ armed wing, Ezdin Al Kassam Brigade, warned Friday that the attack puts hostages’ lives at risk.
“Half of the Israelites (captives) are located in areas where Israeli occupation forces have requested evacuation in recent days,” spokesman Abu Obeida said.
Civil Defense Agency said on Thursday, an Israeli strike attacked a school to serve as a shelter for displaced Palestinians in the Gaza city area.
“They bombed us with missiles and everything changed…we couldn’t find our children.” Crying Raghda al-Sharafa, one of the displaced civilians in the yard of Dar al-Arqam School near Al-Tuffah, Gaza.
The Israeli military confirmed the attack on the school and told AFP it targeted “outstanding terrorists at the Hamas Command and Control Center.”
“I’m afraid to close my eyes at night because I’m worried that when I get up, I won’t find my family because we’re seeing our shelling every day,” Ziad Abu Rialah said in Nuseirat, central Gaza last Friday.
The doctor without borders said Friday that its 58-year-old staff member Hussam Al Loulou, along with his family, was killed in an air strike in central Gaza earlier this week, one of hundreds of aid workers during the war.
“We strongly condemn his killings and once again call for an immediate resumption of the ceasefire and protection of civilians,” the medical charity said.
Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry said 1,249 people have been killed since Israel resumed its fierce bombing last month, with an overall death toll of 50,609 since the war began.
According to Israeli official figures, the October 7, 2023 attack on Israel killed 1,218 people, mainly civilians.
In Lebanon, Hamas’s military department said its commander, Hassan Farhat, was killed during an Israeli strike that raided Sidon’s “inside his apartment” and also killed his son Hamza and daughter Jenan.
The Israeli military confirmed it killed Hassan Farhat, accusing him of orchestrating attacks on Israeli soldiers and civilians, including the deadly rocket fire in the town of Safid last year.
Lebanon condemned the “blatant attack” of its sovereignty, which is a violation of the November armistice between Israel and Lebanese militant group Hezbollah over Hamas ally Hezbollah.
The official Lebanese state news agency said Morgan Ortagus, the U.S. Deputy Envoy for the Middle East (whose country helped oversee the truce), met with top officials in Beirut.
