Israeli infantry backed by warplanes mounted an incursion deeper into Gaza, the army said Friday, as it readies for a ground offensive against Hamas in retaliation to the deadliest attack in the country’s history. As the conflict raged into its 21st day, there was no letup in Israel’s relentless strikes on the Gaza Strip, with European leaders calling for “humanitarian pauses” to allow in critically needed aid.
With tens of thousands of Israeli troops massed alongside the Gaza border ahead of a widely expected ground offensive, the army said its forces had staged a brief ground incursion into central Gaza. “During the last day, IDF ground forces, accompanied by IDF fighter jets and UAVs, conducted an additional targeted raid in the central Gaza Strip,” it said in the second such operation in as many days.
The Israeli army said that tanks and infantry had staged a similar raid targeting the Islamist Hamas in northern Gaza the previous night.
“Nowhere is safe in Gaza,” said Lynne Hastings, as UN figures showed that 1.4 million people, more than half of Gaza’s population, have been displaced by the war. Hastings said that Israel has repeatedly urged civilians in northern Gaza to move south for their safety, but strikes have also hit southern areas and evacuation routes.
There are fears the death toll will grow exponentially if Israel launches a ground operation that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says is being prepared. Israel faces growing calls to ensure its response does not cause increasing civilian casualties. “Israel has to do everything in its power, as difficult as it is, to protect innocent civilians,” US President Joe Biden said this week.
The United Nations warned on Friday, October 27, that “many more will soon die” from the Gaza siege.
Gabriela De La Cruz, with AFP
