Israel Intensifies Action in Central Gaza; Operation Underway in Eastern Rafah

Tel Aviv [Israel], May 12: The Israel Defense Forces said that its troops have been operating in eastern Rafah and have "intensified" operational activity in the Zeitoun area in central Gaza, CNN reported.This comes after the Israeli military ordered the immediate evacuation of several more neighbourhoods in eastern Rafah as the Israeli military steps up its operations in the southern Gazan city.

According to CNN, the military has also ordered residents and the displaced people in several neighbourhoods in northern Gaza to leave the area immediately and head toward "shelters" west of Gaza City. The IDF says dozens of gunmen have been killed and many weapons have been captured amid the ongoing raid in Zeitoun, Times of Israel reported In Rafah, troops killed several more Hamas gunmen in the eastern part of the city, as well as located several tunnels, the IDF says.

According to the IDF, the aircraft struck "tens of terror targets throughout the Gaza Strip, including military structures, launch posts, observation posts, terrorist operatives and additional terrorist infrastructure."As per the update from the local hospitals, at least 47 people were killed, including children, in Israeli airstrikes in northern and central Gaza Friday evening and overnight, as per CNN.IDF troops have also been operating "against Hamas terrorists and infrastructure in specific areas of eastern Rafah," the IDF said. "Over the past day, IDF troops eliminated numerous terrorists in close-quarters combat and dismantled terrorist infrastructure in the area."

It added that IDF troops had also uncovered numerous underground tunnel shafts in the area adjacent to the Rafah crossing into Egypt.Following this, the Ministry of Health in Gaza said that 28 people were killed as a result of Israeli military operations in the most recent 24 hours. The Ministry also stated that 69 people had been injured in the same period.Since the launch of the Israeli counter-offensive, 34,971 people have been killed in Gaza and 78,641 injured, the Ministry stated.

The conflict in Gaza escalated after the October 7 attack by Hamas, where about 2,500 terrorists breached the border into Israel from the Gaza Strip, leading to casualties and the seizure of hostages .Israel has since, characterised its Gaza offensive as targeting Hamas' infrastructure with the goal of eliminating the entire terror group while making efforts to minimize civilian casualties.

Also Read| More tunnels discovered in the Gaza Strip: IDF spokesman

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