Israel intensifies air strikes on Hamas, operations in hospital compound

Israeli fighter jets struck over 60 Hamas targets across Gaza during the last 24 hours, the Israel Defense Forces said on Tuesday morning.

Targets included tunnel shafts, terror infrastructure, and a launching area from where rockets were fired at the Israeli city of Sderot.

Security forces also continued a raid on the Shifa Hospital compound in Gaza City. During the last day, soldiers eliminated several terrorists in the hospital area and seized weapons. Since entering the compound on March 18, Israel has killed over 180 terrorists and detained 800 terror suspects, of whom at least 480 have been confirmed as members of the Hamas or Palestinian Islamic Jihad terror groups.

Israel returned to the hospital compound after receiving intelligence that senior Hamas figures were inside the compound planning attacks.

In Khan Yunis, soldiers continued operations against Hamas targets in the city's Al Amal and Al-Qarara neighborhoods, eliminating Hamas squads and carrying out targeted raids on terrorist infrastructure and buildings. Soldiers seized explosive devices, grenades, weapons, vests, a large amount of ammunition, uniforms and military documents.

In central Gaza, several terrorists were killed, including two Hamas squads spotted adjacent to ground forces. The squads were eliminated by aircraft. A third squad was later identified by a drone and eliminated.

At least 1,200 people were killed and 240 Israelis and foreigners were taken hostage in Hamas's attacks on Israeli communities near the Gaza border on October 7. Of the remaining 134 hostages, Israel recently declared 31 of them dead.