Israel bombards Gaza as war spreads to other fronts
GAZA: Israel bombarded Gaza with more air strikes on Monday ahead of an anticipated ground operation into the besieged Palestinian enclave as the United Nations warned that civilians were running out of places to seek shelter.
In signs that the conflict was spreading, Israeli aircraft also struck southern Lebanon overnight and Israeli troops clashed with Palestinians in occupied West Bank.
More aid crossed the border into Gaza but the UN humanitarian agency said it was just a fraction of the amount needed to help a desperate population short of food, water, medicine and fuel.
Health authorities in Gaza said at least 4,600 people have died in Israel’s two-week bombardment after an assault on October 7 by Hamas on southern Israeli communities.
The Israeli military said on Monday morning that in the past 24 hours it had struck more than 320 targets in Gaza, including a tunnel housing Hamas fighters, and dozens of command and lookout posts.
It said in a statement that it destroyed sites “liable to endanger the troops who are preparing on the Gaza periphery for a ground manoeuvre” as well as dozens of mortar and anti-tank missile launcher positions.
Palestinian media reported that the Israeli attacks concentrated on the Gaza Strip’s centre and north. A strike on a house near the Jabalia refugee camp in northern Gaza killed several Palestinians and wounded others.
Israeli troops and tanks are now massed on the Israeli-Gaza border but how soon they might launch a ground invasion aimed at rooting out Hamas was not clear.
The UN humanitarian office (OCHA) said about 1.4 million of Gaza’s 2.3 million population were now internally displaced, with many seeking refuge in overcrowded UN emergency shelters. Israel has ordered Gaza residents to evacuate the north to avoid being caught up in the fighting.
Early on Monday, Israeli aircraft struck two Hezbollah cells in Lebanon that were planning to launch anti-tank missiles and rockets toward Israel, its military said. Israel’s military also said it struck other Hezbollah targets, including a compound and an observation post.
Hezbollah said one of its fighters was killed, without providing details. Israel’s military said seven soldiers have been killed on the Lebanese border since the latest conflict began.
In the West Bank, two Palestinians were killed at the Jalazone refugee camp near Ramallah, the Palestinian health ministry said on Monday.
Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh called for international unity to stop Israel’s attacks in Gaza and allow aid. The White House said US President Joe Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu affirmed in a call there would now be a continued flow of aid into Gaza.
The UN humanitarian office said the volume of aid entering so far was just 4% of the daily average before the hostilities and a fraction of what was needed.