Israeli forces push deeper into Gaza’s north, south
Israeli forces killed 35 Palestinians in aerial and ground bombardments across the Gaza Strip yesterday and battled in close combat with Hamas members in areas of the southern city of Rafah, health officials and Hamas media said.
Israeli tanks advanced in Rafah's southeast, edged towards the city's western district of Yibna and continued to operate in three eastern suburbs, residents said.
"The occupation (Israeli forces) is trying to move further to the west, they are on the edge of Yibna, which is densely populated. They didn't invade it yet," one resident said, asking not to be named.
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"We hear explosions and we see black smoke coming up from the areas where the army has invaded. It was another very difficult night," he told Reuters via a chat app.
Simultaneous Israeli assaults on the northern and southern edges of Gaza this month have caused a new exodus of hundreds of thousands of Palestinians fleeing their homes, and have cut off the main access routes for aid, raising the risk of famine.
The International Court of Justice (ICJ) will rule today on South Africa's request to order a halt to Israel's Rafah offensive in Gaza, it said yesterday.
Last week, South Africa had asked the ICJ, also known as the World Court, to order a halt to Israel's offensive in Gaza, and in Rafah in particular, to ensure the survival of the Palestinian people.
Israel said it was ready to resume stalled talks on a truce and hostage release deal with Hamas to pause the offensive that began on October 7.
Israeli forces yesterday stepped up a ground offensive in Jabalia, where the military has razed several residential areas, and struck nearby Beit Hanoun town, areas where Israel declared major operations over months ago. Israel says it has had to return to prevent Hamas from regrouping there.
Hamas said it was holding an Israeli colonel captured on October 7, who Israel had previously reported was killed in the attacks that day.
At least 35,800 Palestinians have been killed in Israel's offensive in Gaza, according to the enclave's health ministry yesterday. The toll includes 91 deaths over the past 24 hours, a ministry statement said.
Meanwhile, Israel will reprimand the ambassadors of Ireland, Norway and Spain over their governments' plan to recognise a Palestinian state next week, an Israeli official said.
The envoys have been summoned to the Foreign Ministry in Jerusalem, where they will be shown a previously unpublished video of Hamas taking female captives, the official said.
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