The Israeli military has reported that its ground forces have effectively surrounded the city of Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip. This development follows the loss of 24 soldiers in the enclave, marking the highest single-day casualty toll during the three-month-long war.
In a statement obtained by Al Jazeera on Tuesday, the military said, "Over the past day, troops carried out an extensive operation during which they encircled Khan Younis and deepened the operation in the area," calling the city a stronghold of the Palestinian armed group Hamas.
"Ground troops engaged in close-quarters combat, directed [air] strikes, and used intelligence to coordinate fire, resulting in the elimination of dozens of terrorists," it said of the attacks on Gaza's second-largest city.
Al Jazeera's Hani Mahmoud, reporting from Rafah in southern Gaza, said the Israeli army's operations would only deepen the humanitarian crisis in the city, which has been reeling "from an extreme shortage of food, water and medical supplies."
Khan Younis was "designated as a safe zone for hundreds of thousands of Palestinians who evacuated from the northern parts and Gaza City at the start of the war," Mahmoud said, adding that it "is now a scene of much suffering and devastation."
What Exactly Happened?
According to an article published by Reuters, Spokesman Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari said 21 soldiers were killed when two buildings they had mined for demolition exploded after militants fired at a nearby tank. Three other soldiers were also reportedly killed in a separate attack.
"Yesterday we experienced one of our most difficult days since the war erupted," Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said. "In the name of our heroes, for the sake of our lives, we will not stop fighting until absolute victory."
The deaths occurred on the day Israeli Defense Forces undertook their largest operation in a month. The mission aimed to seize the remaining parts of Khan Younis, Gaza's primary southern city, which is currently providing shelter to hundreds of thousands of displaced Palestinians.
Israeli tanks headed west towards the Mediterranean, blocking the road to the coast on Tuesday. This move cut off the escape route for civilians trying to reach Rafah, the last town on Gaza's southern edge, now housing more than half of the enclave's 2.3 million people.
"I am trying to leave for Rafah but the tanks are now very near to the coast and are firing toward the west," Shaban, 45, an electrical engineer with four children, told Reuters by phone. In a span of 24 hours, the documented death toll has risen to 25,490, with at least 195 Palestinians reported killed, according to Palestinian health officials. Thousands more are feared to be lost in the rubble.
