Israel deepens military attack north of Gaza Belt

Israeli troops and convoys have entered deeper north of Gaza's Belt on October 30th, reaching the inhabited areas.

Meanwhile, the United Nations and health staff have warned that air strikes are hitting closer hospitals, where tens of thousands of Palestinians have taken refuge and where thousands of wounded are being treated.
Intensification of land operations took place one day after 33 trucks with food, medicine and other supplies entered Gaza from Egypt.

This is the biggest humanitarian aid that has been sent to the Gaza Strip since the war between Israel and the Palestinian Hamas militants began. But relief workers said Monday that however, aid is not enough for the needs in Gaza, which is under siege for weeks.

The Health Ministry in Gaza said the number of Palestinians killed has exceeded 8,000. This ministry said most victims are women and minors.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned that he has launched the second <x0phaza” of the war after Hamas launched attacks on Israel on 7 October, killing more than 1,400 people, mostly civilians.

In a video released Monday by the Israeli Army, they were seen on the highway, moving between buildings north of Gaza and soldiers settling in positions inside a house. The exact location where the video was recorded is unknown, but images released Saturday by the military showed troops walking through empty areas near the border in northern Gaza.

The Israeli Army said Monday that at night its troops have killed dozens of militants who attacked from inside buildings and tunnels, adding that air strikes have destroyed a building that Hamas was using. Also, the military said it has targeted over 600 militant targets in recent days, including weapons depots and rocket launchers' positions. These claims could not be confirmed independently.

Hamas' military arm said militants have clashed with small arms and opposing rockets with Israeli troops entering the northwest of Gaza's Belt. Palestinian militants have continued to launch missiles in Israel, including one towards Tel Aviv.

Communications lines have been restored to most of Gaza's 2.3 million residents on Sunday, as for more than a day they remained without telecommunication and internet services following severe bombings.

Israel said most Gaza residents have obeyed its command to flee to the southern part of the surrounded territory, but hundreds of thousands continue to be in the north, in part because Israel is also attacking in the so-called safe areas.

More than 1.4 million people in Gaza have fled their homes since the war began.

The siege of Gaza by Israel has caused infrastructure in this territory to be near collapse. For weeks, the Gaza Belt has no electricity, and hospitals are having difficulty operating, using generators to keep incubators and key equipment. /rel