The Israeli military said yesterday it had begun ‘ground activity’ in the Jneina neighbourhood of Rafah City to expand what it described as the security zone in southern Gaza.
On March 18, Israel resumed bombing and ground operations in Hamas which it said were intended to increase pressure on Hamas to free hostages.
Israel’s military on Thursday announced it had resumed its ground offensive in the southern Gaza Strip while continuing activity in other parts of the enclave. This comes after reporting it had intercepted missiles from Yemen and Hamas said they had fired rockets towards Tel Aviv.
Meanwhile, medical sources told Al Jazeera that at least 21 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli attacks on the Gaza Strip since dawn. Thirteen of the victims died in southern Gaza.
Meanwhile, Palestine’s Wafa news agency says six Palestinians – including three women – have been killed in Israeli bombardment in northern Gaza’s Beit Lahiya area.
The Red Cross said yesterday it is gravely concerned about the fate of nine Palestine Red Crescent ambulance crew who have been missing for seven days in Gaza.
The international humanitarian organisation has not had any contact with the crew since they came under heavy fire while operating in Rafah in the early hours of March 23, it said in a statement.
“It is vital that there is information and access to ensure the safe return of these humanitarians to their families who are in a nightmare without knowing if their loved ones are alive,” it stated.
According to the UN at least 1,060 healthcare workers have been killed in the eighteen months since Israel launched its offensive in Gaza after Hamas fighters stormed southern Israel on October 7, 2023.
The Israeli military said it does its best to reduce harm to civilians and questioned the death toll provided by health authorities in the Hamas-run territory.
Rights group Human Rights Watch (HRW) has issued a statement on Israel’s targeting ambulances, stating that the laws of conflict protect them in all circumstances, Al Jazeera reports.
International humanitarian law, or the laws of conflict, “provides that ambulances used exclusively for medical transportation must be respected and protected in all circumstances”, HRW said in a statement.
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