Israeli fighter jets have struck the house of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Gaza, the Israeli military said on Thursday.
Haniyeh’s house was “used as terrorist infrastructure and often served as a meeting point for Hamas’ senior leaders to direct terror attacks against Israeli civilians and IDF (Israel Defence Forces) soldiers”, the military said.
Southern offensive
Israeli forces dropped leaflets warning Palestinians to flee parts of southern Gaza, residents said on Thursday, signalling a possible expansion of their offensive to areas where hundreds of thousands of people who heeded earlier evacuation orders are crowded into UN-run shelters and family homes.
Meanwhile, soldiers continued searching Shifa Hospital in the north, in a raid that began early on Wednesday.
They displayed guns they say were found hidden in one building, but have yet to release any evidence of the central Hamas command centre that Israel has said is concealed beneath the complex. Hamas and staff at the hospital deny the allegations.
Broadening operations to the south — where Israel already carries out daily air raids — threatens to worsen an already severe humanitarian crisis in the besieged territory. Over 1.5 million people have been internally displaced in Gaza, with most having fled to the south, where food, water and electricity are scarce.
