Tel Aviv, 29 October 2023 (dpa) - Israel's army again attacked hundreds of Hamas positions during the night as it expanded its ground operations in Gaza, it said on Sunday morning, while people in Gaza took shelter at a hospital.

Fighter jets bombed more than 450 targets over the past day, including command centres, observation posts and launching pads for anti-tank missiles, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said on Telegram.

Israeli combat units attacked terrorist cells that had attempted to attack and fire anti-tank missiles, the IDF said.

An Israeli officer was seriously injured during the night when he was hit by a mortar shell in the northern Gaza Strip, the army added. Another Israeli soldier was injured in a skirmish with terrorists, also in the north, it said. Both were being treated in hospital, according to the IDF.

Israeli drones, warplanes and missiles have been relentlessly pounding targets across Hamas-controlled Gaza. The Health Ministry, which is run by Hamas, puts the death toll at 7,326 people since the start of the war.

The war between Israel and Gaza's Hamas rulers began after a large-scale attack on Israeli civilians by Hamas militants on October 7.

Hamas militants killed more than 1,400 people and kidnapped at least 229 others during the attack on October 7.

Israel is entering the next phase of its war on Hamas in Gaza from the air, land and sea, IDF spokesman Daniel Hagari said in a video released overnight on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter.

"The ground operations in the northern Gaza Strip continue. We are progressing through the stages of the war according to plan. We are gradually expanding the ground activity and the scope of our forces in the Gaza Strip," he said later in an update.

Thousands of Gaza residents clustered around the Shifa Hospital in Gaza for shelter, according to reports.

Images published by CNN, Al-Jazeera and other television broadcasters indicate that many residents have sought refuge near the Gaza Strip's largest hospital.

Further south, thousands broke into warehouses and distribution centres for relief supplies, according to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA).

In the central and southern Gaza Strip, they took wheat flour and other items such as hygiene products, UNRWA said.

“This is a worrying sign that civil order is starting to break down after three weeks of war and a tight siege on Gaza," said Thomas White, director of UNRWA Affairs in Gaza. "People are scared, frustrated and desperate."

The supply situation in Gaza was very bad even before the war broke out and has since worsened significantly amid a blockade and massive displacement.

"Massive displacement of people from the north of the Gaza Strip southward has placed enormous pressure on those communities, adding further burden on crumbling public services. Some families received up to 50 relatives taking shelter in one household," White said.

Goods from about 80 trucks have entered the Gaza Strip from Egypt through the Rafah border crossing since the Gaza war began three weeks ago. No convoys were able to enter on Saturday due to the breakdown of internet and communication services.

White called for a regular and steady flow line of humanitarian supplies into Gaza.

Communications in Gaza were partially restored on Sunday after being knocked out as Israel increased its attacks on Friday.

Samer Abdeljaber, the representative of the World Food Programme (WFP) responsible for the Palestinian territories, told US broadcaster CNN that contact with staff had been partially restored.

That caused problems in attempts to coordinate the delivery of aid supplies, he said, saying he hoped trucks would be allowed into Gaza in the course of the day.

Israel meanwhile ruled out the use of Starlink, after tech billionaire Elon Musk said SpaceX's Starlink satellite communications system could help restore communications in Gaza interrupted amid Israel's bombardment.

As the attacks continue, the International Committee of the Red Cross called on both sides to immediately de-escalate, given the humanitarian situation in Gaza.

The expansion of Israeli ground operations is also complicating Qatar's mediation efforts to free the hostages, the emirate's foreign minister said.

Concerns over the fate of at least 229 people believed to be held hostage by Hamas in Gaza is growing.

Israel's military actions in the Gaza Strip have gone too far and will bring others into the conflict, Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi warned.

"The crimes of the Zionist entity, humanitarian and military, have crossed the red lines that could force everyone to act," Raisi told al-Jazeera.

Meanwhile in Israel, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accused the intelligence service of failing to warn him about Hamas' plans.

Unlike senior military and intelligence officials and Defence Minister Yoav Galant, Netanyahu has not taken responsibility for the failings of the Israeli security services to prevent the brutal attacks.

Netanyahu insisted in a post on X that he had not been informed by Hamas' planned attacks, saying security officials had all assessed that Hamas was deterred.

His post came in response to a journalist's question during a press conference on Saturday evening, according to media reports. The post was later deleted.

The journalist said Netanyahu received documents from military intelligence and the domestic intelligence agency Shin Bet warning of a growing threat of war before the brutal attacks.

Soldiers monitoring Gaza noticed threatening movements but their warnings were ignored, according to reports.

Photo: X screenshot