Israeli forces intensify attack on Rafah, killing 14 people in Gaza

Israeli forces killed at least 14 Palestinians in tank and air strikes on northern and central Gaza on Friday, medics said, while tanks continued to advance into northwest Rafah near the border with Egypt.

Relentless fighting between Israelis and Hamas in the enclave continued, while a parallel conflict in the Lebanese-Israeli border area, involving Hamas-allied Hezbollah, intensified.

Meanwhile, some Palestinians who lost their homes in the Israeli attack on Gaza said they feared their makeshift camp on the beach could be inundated by high waves.

Palestinian health officials said Israeli tank shelling killed eight people and wounded several others in the Nuseirat refugee camp in central Gaza, and six others were killed in an airstrike on a house in Gaza City.

In the northern town of Beit Hanoun, several Palestinians were killed and injured in an Israeli attack on a car, paramedics said.

It was unclear how many of the victims were combatants and how many were civilians.

In the southern city of Rafah, where the Israeli army has been operating since May, tanks continued to advance northwestward with the support of aircraft, residents reported.

They also reported heavy fire and explosions in the east of the city, where Israeli forces blew up several houses, according to residents and Hamas media.

“Our fighters are engaged in heavy firefights with Israeli forces that have entered the Tanour neighborhood in Rafah,” Hamas's armed wing said in a statement.

The Israeli military said forces operating in Rafah had killed hundreds of Palestinian fighters, uncovered tunnels and explosive devices and destroyed military infrastructure in recent weeks.

Israel's demand to maintain control over the southern border line between Rafah and Egypt has been at the heart of international efforts to achieve a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas.

The United States and mediators Qatar and Egypt have been trying for months to reach a ceasefire, but have failed to bring Israel and Hamas to a final agreement.

Two obstacles proved particularly difficult: Israel's demand to station troops in the Philadelphia Corridor between Gaza and Egypt, and the details of an exchange of Israeli hostages for Palestinian prisoners held by Israel.

The invading sea

A new challenge for displaced Palestinians in the Al-Mawasi region in the south of the Gaza Strip is the fear of high waves. Some tents near the beach were flooded last week.

“Enough, enough, enough. We were pushed by the occupation (Israel) to the sea, where we felt safe. Last week the sea overflowed and washed away some tents. This could happen again. Where would we go then?” said Shaban, 47, an electrical engineer who was displaced from Gaza City.

This latest war in the decades-old Israeli-Palestinian conflict began on October 7 last year, when Hamas attacked Israel, killing 1,200 people and taking about 250 hostages, according to Israeli sources.

Israel's subsequent assault on the Hamas-ruled enclave killed more than 41,000 Palestinians, according to the local health ministry, and displaced almost the entire population of 2.3 million. It led to famine and genocide allegations at the International Court of Justice, which Israel denies.

Israel says it wants to wipe out Hamas, an Iranian ally, because it sees it as a threat to its existence.