Live – Gaza: Israeli bombings continue, IDF says it hit “150 underground targets”

Families of hostages held by Hamas in the Gaza Strip, mostly Israelis, have expressed their “concern” and demanded an explanation from the government after the army’s heavy bombardment against the Palestinian enclave.

“Families are worried about the fate of their loved ones and are waiting for explanations. Every minute seems like an eternity. We demand that Defense Minister Yov Gallant and members of the War Cabinet meet with us this morning,” it said in a statement. Association to reunite the families of more than 220 hostages kidnapped by Hamas on October 7.

Communications and internet have been cut off in Gaza since Friday, according to the ruling Hamas government in the Palestinian territories. Jawwal, the Palestinian telecommunications company, confirmed the cut.

AFP journalists in the Gaza Strip explained that they could only communicate in areas that received the Israeli network.

The Israeli military says it killed a Hamas officer in charge of “paramotors, drones, detection equipment and air defense”.

“Azem Abu Raqaba participated in organizing massacres in communities bordering the Gaza Strip on October 7,” the report said, adding that he “led terrorists who infiltrated Israel with paramotors and was responsible for drone attacks on IDF observation posts.”

Israeli shelling of the Gaza Strip continued Saturday morning, AFP reporters stationed in the area said.

Medical sources in the Palestinian Territory told an AFP journalist that they feared a large number of victims and significant damage after the blasts.

Israeli warplanes, artillery and sporadic explosions from the sea were heard by an AFP journalist this morning as well. The intensity of the airstrikes and artillery attacks had weakened compared to the night, the reporter said.

As ground fighting raged today in the Gaza Strip, the target of an unprecedented Israeli offensive, the Israeli military announced in a press release that it struck “150 underground targets” in the north of the enclave overnight.

“Overnight, IDF warplanes struck 150 underground targets in the northern Gaza Strip, including mines used by terrorists, underground war bases and other underground infrastructure. Hamas terrorists were killed,” said a statement released after a night of Israeli strikes. .

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Several UN agencies including the Palestinian Red Cross and the World Health Organization (WHO) Héléna Ranchal, director of international operations at Médecins du Monde, lamented the same situation when the agencies explained in recent hours that they had lost contact with their teams in Gaza. .

“Unfortunately, we have lost touch. We are very worried. We are talking about civilians, caregivers, humanitarian workers. They are without any protection,” he explained on BFMTV.

“People in Gaza can’t call an ambulance (…) There really should be a ceasefire. People are dying horribly,” he added.

After the extension of Israel’s “ground operations” in Gaza, with several attacks, the night was quiet on the Israeli side, our special envoys report.

This Saturday morning, no rockets were fired from Gaza into Israel.

Frédéric Journes, the French ambassador to Israel, announced that he had been “informed” by the Israeli army of a “second phase of provocation”. War between the Jewish state and HamasTwenty days after the terror group’s attacks.

“They recalled all the reservists,” he added, adding, “There are 350,000 soldiers who joined the ranks of the IDF.”

The human rights group Human Rights Watch (HRW) has warned that telecommunications and internet blackouts in the Gaza Strip are “a cover for mass atrocities” and are subject to serious Israeli bombardment risks.

“This blackout of information risks being a cover for mass atrocities and contributing to impunity for human rights violations,” HRW official Deborah Brown lamented in a statement.

Several UN agencies including the Palestinian Red Cross and the World Health Organization (WHO) The agencies also said they had lost contact with their teams in Gaza.

“Shame on you!” began the Israeli ambassador to the UN on Friday, calling it “disgraceful”. General Assembly vote of resolution calling for “humanitarian ceasefire”.But on the 21st day of the war between Israel and Hamas, without mentioning Hamas.

“This is a dark day for the UN and humanity,” lamented Gilad Erdan, who vowed that Israel would continue to use “all means” at its disposal to “eliminate the world of evil that Hamas represents” and “bring hostages.” House.”

Hello and welcome to the live coverage of the conflict between Israel and Hamas. The Israeli army “extended its ground operations” in Gaza last night, its spokesman Daniel Hagari announced, noting that the IDF had increased its influence “very significantly” in the north of the enclave.

Hamas declared “violent fighting” with the IDF in the enclave.

“We are facing Israeli ground incursions in Beit Hanoun (north) and Al Boureij (center). Heavy fighting is ongoing,” Ezzedine al-Qassam Brigades, Hamas’ military wing, said in a statement.