On Tuesday, the Israeli army confirmed that it with the help of tanks took control of the Gaza Strip through the Rafah checkpoint, after a night of intense bombing of the eastern part of this southern city on the border with Egypt.

Israeli forces continue to “scan” the crossing. The army said this morning without specifying the number of ground troops present, although it stressed it was a “precise and limited” operation against Hamas targets.

According to a military official, the capture of the Ghazan side of Rafah was Carried out by the 401st Brigade, consisting mainly of tanks. and the elite Givati ​​Brigade, and it was prompted by an attack from the area by Hamas two days ago that killed four soldiers and which the army said confirmed the area was being used by militias.

Contrary to a statement yesterday Monday by the Hamas government in the Gaza Strip, in which it warned that the Israeli army’s evacuation order for eastern Rafah had received a “limited response”, an army spokesman said today that Most of the population was able to find refuge in Al-Mawasi, Khan Yunis.and this made the operation easier.

But at least 18 Gazans died early Tuesday morning in Rafahin the south of the Gaza Strip, after a night of constant bombing of houses, after the Israeli war cabinet announced late last night that it would not stop its military “operation” despite continuing to exhaust the possibility of a truce.

The army, for its part, said today that it killed 20 suspected militiamenin the eastern Rafah region with militants and ground troops, and also discovered three Hamas operational tunnels and destroyed a vehicle containing explosives.

Moreover, the same military source confirmed that Kerem Shalom crossing remains closed after Hamas attack for “security reasons” and that as of this Monday, no humanitarian aid is reaching Gaza, a situation that is not expected to change today.

Arrival of humanitarian aid through the Rafah crossing, vital for supplies to the sector and used by Gazans seeking refuge in Egypt after seven months of war, She is also paralyzed.

“The entire eastern part of Rafah has become the scene of fighting since yesterday. The bombing did not stop for a moment.”confirmed EFE representative of the Rafah land crossing in the Palestinian enclave.

You might be interested > Hamas accepts ceasefire proposal in Gaza Strip; Israel analyzes this but will attack Rafah

“(The transitions) haven’t been working since yesterday. But there are no crews due to direct shelling of the entire territory, both assistance and passengers have been suspended,” he added.

(EFE)