Israeli forces have been using armored personnel carriers packed with explosives and detonated remotely in densely populated parts of Gaza, Reuters reported Monday, citing residents in Gaza City’s Sheikh Radwan neighborhood describing massive blasts that leveled homes and forced evacuations.
The tactic, used repeatedly during the war, comes amid intensified fighting across the enclave and days after the assassination of Abu Obaida, spokesman of Hamas’ military wing, in an airstrike in Gaza City.
IDF forces operating in Gaza
(Video: IDF)
The Hamas-run Health Ministry said that 98 Palestinians were killed and more than 400 were wounded in the past 24 hours.
Witnesses said the unmanned APCs were deployed to the eastern part of the neighborhood and triggered from a distance, causing widespread destruction. While not new, the method has raised alarm among residents and civil defense officials, who say the blasts can level buildings within 100 meters and damage others as far as 300 meters away.
Meanwhile, Israeli troops continue operations across Gaza. Military officials said forces in the north struck multiple Hamas positions, including observation posts and a building from which anti-tank missiles were launched. No Israeli casualties were reported.
Troops also destroyed monitoring equipment, underground tunnels and explosives sites, the army said.
In the south, Palestinians reported Israeli shelling in Khan Younis, including a strike near tents sheltering displaced people. The IDF said Kfir Brigade forces have killed dozens of terrorists in recent months and destroyed about five miles of underground tunnels. Some of those killed, the military said, were involved in the Oct. 7 attack on southern Israel.
Trucks carrying solar power systems, communications gear and advanced batteries were also seen entering Gaza, according to local sources.