Israel presses ground offensive

ISRAELS military pressed ground operations across the Gaza Strip on Sunday, encircling part of Rafah city near Egypt almost a week into a renewed assault on the Palestinian territory.

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Deployment of Israeli troops in parts of Gaza, despite calls to revive a January truce with Hamas militants, comes alongside a deadly flare-up in Lebanon and missiles fired from Yemen.

The health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza said on Sunday that the war triggered by Hamas's October 7, 2023 attack on Israel had killed at least 50 021 people in the territory.

AFP was unable to independently verify the figure. Gaza’s civil defence agency said separately, citing its own records, that the death toll had topped 50 000 people.

Hamas’ attack on Israel resulted in 1 218 deaths, mostly civilians, according to Israeli figures.

Israeli troops on Sunday encircled Tal al-Sultan in Rafah, the military said in a statement, adding its objective was to “dismantle terrorist infrastructure and eliminate” militants there.

Earlier on Sunday, Israel had warned residents of the area to evacuate.

Rafah, in southern Gaza, had already been the target of a major Israeli offensive about a year ago.

At a charity kitchen in Khan Yunis, southern Gaza’s main city just north of Rafah, 19-year-old Iman al-Bardawil said many displaced Palestinians are struggling to “afford food and drink” during the holy month of Ramadaan.