The Israeli army shelled Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip even as it intensified its attacks in the north and center of the besieged Palestinian territory.
Residents said Israeli forces appeared to be attempting to complete their capture of Rafah, the town on the southern edge of the enclave that has been under violent attack since early May.
The tanks were forcing their way into the western and northern parts of the city, having already captured the east, south and center.
Israeli forces fired from planes, tanks and ships off the coast, sparking a new wave of displacement out of the city, which was home to more than a million displaced people, most of whom were forced to flee again.
Palestinian health officials said at least 12 Palestinians were killed Friday in separate Israeli military strikes.
The Israeli military said Friday its forces were carrying out “precise, intelligence-driven” actions in the Rafah area, where troops were involved in close-quarters fighting and had located tunnels used by the Palestinian group Hamas.
Some residents of Rafah said the pace of the Israeli raid had accelerated over the past two days. They said the sounds of explosions and gunfire were almost incessant.
“Last night was one of the worst nights in western Rafah. Drones, planes, tanks and military boats bombarded the area. We believe the occupation is trying to complete control of the city,” Hatem, 45, said by text message.
“The entire city of Rafah is a zone of Israeli military operations,” said Ahmed al-Sofi, the mayor of Rafah. “The city is experiencing a humanitarian catastrophe and people are dying in their tents because of Israeli bombings. »
Palestinian and United Nations figures show fewer than 100,000 people may have remained in the city’s far west, which was home to more than half of Gaza’s 2.3 million residents before the Israeli offensive began in May.