‘Most’ intense day of fighting as Israel hits 2nd largest Gaza city

Khan Younis, December 5

Israeli forces stormed southern Gaza's second largest city on Tuesday in what they called the most intense day of combat in five weeks of ground operations against Hamas militants, and hospitals struggled to cope with scores of Palestinian dead and wounded.

In what appeared to be the biggest ground assault in Gaza since a truce with Hamas unravelled last week, Israel said its forces — which were backed by warplanes — had reached the heart of Khan Younis.

"We are in the most intense day since the beginning of the ground operation," the commander of the Israeli military's Southern Command, General Yaron Finkelman, said in Jerusalem.

He said Israeli forces were also fighting in Jabalia, a large urban refugee camp and Hamas stronghold in northern Gaza next to Gaza City, and in Shuja'iyya, east of the city.

"We are in the heart of Jabalia, in the heart of Shuja'iyya, and now also in the heart of Khan Younis," he said.

Khan Younis residents said Israeli troops and tanks had crossed through the Israeli border fence enclosing the coastal Gaza Strip and closed in on the city from the east.

After days of ordering residents to flee the area, Israeli forces dropped new leaflets on Tuesday with instructions to stay inside shelters during the assault. "For your safety, stay in the shelters and the hospitals where you are. Don’t get out. Going out is dangerous. You have been warned," said the leaflets, addressed to residents of six districts amounting to around a quarter of Khan Younis.

The Israelis, who largely seized Gaza's northern half last month before pausing for the week-long truce, say they are now extending their ground offensive to the south. They believe Hamas commanders they aim to eliminate are holed up in part of a vast tunnel network in the territory.

"We're moving ahead with the second stage now. A second stage that is going to be difficult militarily," Israeli government spokesperson Eylon Levy said.