According to witnesses, the pace of the Israeli attack has intensified in the last two days, with sounds of explosions and gunfire indicating fierce fighting that has been almost uninterrupted.
Israeli forces bombed Rafah and other areas in the Gaza Strip and engaged in hand-to-hand combat with militants led by the Palestinian Islamic group Hamas, according to residents and Israeli military officials.
Residents said the Israelis appeared to be trying to conclude the capture of Rafah, the city at the southern end of the enclave that has been the focus of an Israeli attack since early May.
Diversify by investing in Brazil and abroad using the same App with XP Global Investment. Tanks were pushing into the western and northern parts of the city, after having already captured the east, south, and center.
Israeli forces fired from planes, tanks, and ships off the coast, forcing a new wave of displacement from the city, which housed over a million displaced people, most of whom were forced to flee again. Palestinian health officials said at least 12 Palestinians were killed in separate Israeli military attacks on Friday.
Israeli military said on Friday that their forces were conducting “precise and intelligence-based” actions in the Rafah area, where troops were engaged in close combat and located tunnels used by militants.
Actions in other parts of the enclave were also reported.Continues after advertisementEscalation of attacksSome Rafah residents said the pace of the Israeli attack had accelerated in the last two days. They said that the sounds of explosions and gunfire indicating fierce fighting had been almost continuous.
“Last night was one of the worst nights in western Rafah, drones, planes, tanks, and naval boats bombed the area. We feel that the occupation is trying to complete the control of the city,” said 45-year-old Hatem, contacted via text message.
“They are facing heavy attacks from resistance fighters, which may be slowing them down.”After more than eight months of war in Gaza, Israel’s advance is now focused on the last two areas that its forces had not yet invaded: Rafah in the far south of Gaza, and the area around Deir al-Balah in the center.
“The entire city of Rafah is an Israeli military operations area,” said Ahmed Al-Sofi, the mayor of Rafah, in a statement released by Hamas media on Friday.
“The city is experiencing a humanitarian catastrophe, and people are dying inside their tents because of the Israeli bombardment,” he added.
Sofi stated that there were no functioning medical facilities in the city, and the remaining residents and displaced families lacked the bare minimum of their daily needs for food and water.
Palestinian and UN data show that fewer than 100,000 people may have remained on the west side of the city, which housed more than half of Gaza’s 2.3 million inhabitants before the start of the Israeli attack in early May.
The military accused Hamas of using Palestinian civilians as human shields, an allegation that Hamas denies.Israel’s ground and air campaign was triggered when militants led by Hamas invaded southern Israel on October 7, killing around 1,200 people and taking over 250 hostages, according to Israeli records.
Continues after advertisementThe offensive left Gaza in ruins, killed over 37,400 people, according to Palestinian health authorities, and left almost the entire population homeless and helpless.
