Gaza: Hamas kill 24 Israeli soldiers

Twenty-four Israeli soldiers were killed during intense fighting in Gaza on Monday, marking the Israel Defense Forces’s bloodiest day since the war began.

Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari, an Israeli military spokesman, told reporters on Tuesday that 21 troops were killed in an explosion after Hamas terrorists fired rocket-propelled grenades at a tank.

He said a second explosion occurred at the same time in two buildings where forces had planted explosives in order to destroy them. The buildings collapsed onto nearby troops.

“We are still studying and investigating the details of the event and the reasons for the explosion,” Rear Admiral Hagari said.

Earlier, the military had said three soldiers were killed in a separate attack in southern Gaza.

The reports came amid what Palestinians said was the most intense bombardment of southern Gaza in the conflict.

At the same time, Israeli forces pushed deep into western Khan Younis on Monday, with an air, sea and land bombardment that included storming a hospital and arresting medical staff, a spokesman for the Hamas-run health ministry, Ashraf al Qidra, told Reuters.

There was no comment from Israel on the situation at the hospital.

Mr Qidra said at least 50 people were killed on Sunday night in the key southern city, while the sieges at medical facilities meant dozens of dead and wounded were beyond the reach of rescuers.

The IDF launched an offensive last week to capture Khan Younis, which it now says is the principal headquarters of the Hamas leaders responsible for the Oct 7 attacks on southern Israel.

Israel has vowed to wipe out the group, which rules Gaza and is sworn to Israel’s destruction.

At least 25,295 Gazans have now been killed since the war began, the enclave’s Hamas-run health ministry said in an update on Monday.