At least 4 Israeli soldiers were killed and three others were injured in a roadside bomb attack in Rafah area of Gaza, the Israeli military said on Thursday.
The Israeli military said it continued to target Hamas and was also operating in the southern areas of Rafah and Khan Yunis.
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Ready to send your soldiers to hell, Hamas warns
Hamas’s armed wing, the Ezzedine al-Qassam Brigades, warned the military to expect fierce fighting.
“We are ready to send the lives of your soldiers to hell, and we have prepared for you an army of martyrs,” the group said in a statement.
“Gaza will be a cemetery for your soldiers.”
Later on Thursday the Israeli military said four of its soldiers had been killed using an explosive device in Rafah, in southern Gaza.
Israeli tanks and jets pounded Gaza City, the target of a major ground offensive, on Thursday prompting Palestinians to flee south.
