Israeli airstrikes, tank fire pound Gaza City
An explosion is seen after an Israeli air strike in the southern Gaza Strip town of Rafah near the border with Egypt yesterday. Israeli troops and Hamas fighters fought fierce battles in the streets of Gaza's main city as Israel's war on Hamas entered its 18th day and the death toll went above 900.Photo: AFP
Israeli troops and Palestinian gunmen fought fierce night-time clashes around Gaza yesterday, with Israeli tanks making their deepest incursion yet into districts of Gaza City, witnesses said.
Israeli ground troops battled Palestinian militants in the streets of a densely populated Gaza City neighbourhood early yesterday, destroying dozens of homes and sending terrified residents running for cover as gunfire and explosions echoed in the distance.
Israel's push into Tel Hawwa neighbourhood was the farthest it has moved into Gaza City during its 18-day offensive against Hamas militants, and brought Israel's ground forces within a mile of the crowded city centre. Palestinian hospital officials say more than 900 Palestinians, half of them civilians, have been killed.
Israel launched the offensive on Dec. 27 to end years of Palestinian rocket attacks on its southern towns, and Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has vowed to press forward with an "iron fist," despite growing international calls for an end to the fighting. UN chief Ban Ki-moon was headed to the region Tuesday to press for a ceasefire.
An army spokesman confirmed fighting in several areas, as Israel's war to put an end to Hamas rocket fire from the Gaza Strip entered its 18th day, but he could not elaborate.
Israel's military chief says his troops have inflicted damage on Hamas in the Gaza Strip but will continue fighting to achieve more.
Lt Gen Gabi Ashkenazi says soldiers are doing "exceptional work" and that Hamas fighters, infrastructure and government institutions in the territory have been dealt a serious blow.
Witnesses said Israeli special forces advanced into the southern Gaza City neighbourhood of Tal Al-Hawa after midnight (2200 GMT Monday) and were ambushed by Palestinian fighters.
Subsequently, Israeli tanks pushed into the district and opened fire, supported by aerial bombing.
Hamas's armed wing, the Ezzedine al-Qassam Brigades, said fighters had knocked out two Israeli tanks in Gaza City's Zeitun neighbourhood with rocket-propelled grenades (RPGs), a claim denied by Israel.
"Tanks have entered Tal al-Hawa, Ash Sheikh Ajlin and Zeitun neighbourhoods further than before" in the war, an AFP correspondent said. "The airplanes are bombing and the tanks are shelling."
Palestinian fighters responded to the advancing tanks with mortar fire, he said to the sound of explosions in the background, as bright blasts lit up the night sky.
Medics said one Palestinian was killed by tank fire in Zeitun. It was not clear whether the victim was a fighter or civilian.
And witnesses said three people were hurt when an airstrike destroyed a house in Gaza City's Sheikh Radwan district.
On Monday, residents said Israeli tanks punched their way into the southern rim of Gaza City, advancing several hundred metres (yards) into Ash Sheikh Ajlin, Zeitun and Tuffah, where the sound of gunfire echoed.
"We are tightening the encirclement of the city," the offensive's commander, Brigadier Eyal Eisenberg, told reporters. "We are not static. We are careful to be constantly on the move."
Heavy fighting was also reported early on Tuesday in Beit Lahiya and Jabaliya, just to the north of Gaza City, and around the city of Khan Yunis, some 20 kilometres (12 miles) to the south.
Witnesses said Israeli special forces tried to enter the village of Khuzaa, southeast of Khan Yunis and close to the Israeli border, but were driven back after being ambushed. Tanks later shelled the village.
Hamas said a number of soldiers died in the assault on Khuzaa, but an army spokesman said there were no reports of Israeli troops killed.
Khuzaa was the scene of tank fire on Sunday that killed a woman and wounded at least 60 other people. Doctors said 55 of them suffered injuries from white phosphorous shells, banned under international law for use in civilian areas.
At the time, an army spokeswoman said: "There is no use of white phosphorous. Everything we use is according to international law."
Warplanes on Monday hit more than 60 targets, including 20 weapons-smuggling tunnels in Rafah, on the Egyptian border, and nine rocket launch sites, a military spokesman said.
Witnesses said air strikes on Rafah were continuing into early Tuesday.
The war to force Hamas to stop firing rockets on southern Israel erupted on December 27 with an intensive bombing campaign that was widened a week later with a ground assault on the narrow, densely populated Gaza Strip.
More than 900 Palestinians have been killed in the onslaught.
Meanwhile, envoys of the militant Palestinian Hamas are continuing talks in Cairo with officials on an Egyptian truce proposal for the embattled Gaza Strip where the Israeli offensive is in its third week.
The talks Tuesday follow diplomatic efforts that have made little concrete progress in reconciling key differences between Israel and the militant Palestinians.
A three-member Hamas delegation from the group's exiled leadership in Syria returned to Cairo from Damascus late Monday for more talks.
The UN Security Council has already passed a resolution calling for a cease-fire. Ban was headed to the Mideast on Tuesday to enforce the measure.
Speaking at UN headquarters in New York on Monday, Ban said he has been on the phone constantly with top officials in the Middle East, Europe and the United States promoting the cease-fire. But he said phone calls are not a substitute for direct talks with leaders who have influence on the parties.
"To both sides, I say: Just stop, now," the UN chief said. "Too many people have died. There has been too much civilian suffering. Too many people, Israelis and Palestinians, live in daily fear of their lives."
The secretary-general said he plans to meet senior officials in Egypt and Jordan on Wednesday, then head to Israel, the West Bank, Turkey, Lebanon, Syria and Kuwait.
The fighting has raised concerns about a looming humanitarian disaster in Gaza, where hundreds of thousands of people are without power and running water. The Israeli army said about 100 truckloads of humanitarian aid, including wheat, flour and medical supplies, were expected to be let into the territory on Tuesday.
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