Israeli tanks advance deeper into Gaza City, trapping civilians

Israeli tanks advanced deeper into several densely populated neighbourhoods of Gaza City on Sunday, with health authorities unable to respond to dozens of desperate calls for help.

Witnesses and medics told Reuters that the tanks entered key residential areas including Sabra, Tal al-Hawa, Sheikh Radwan and al-Nasser. 

The incursions mark a significant escalation, bringing Israeli forces closer to the centre and western parts of the city, where hundreds of thousands of displaced Palestinians are currently seeking shelter.

Local health officials reported receiving dozens of urgent calls from civilians trapped in affected areas but said they were unable to respond due to the intensity of the military operation and the ongoing bombardment.

The Israeli military began its long-anticipated ground offensive on Gaza City on 16 September, following weeks of heavy air strikes and remotely detonated robot explosions.

The assault has triggered a new wave of displacement, with an estimated 350,000 to 400,000 Palestinians forced to flee Gaza City since last month, although hundreds of thousands remain, according to the World Food Programme. 

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The Civil Emergency Service in Gaza said late on Saturday that Israel had denied 73 requests, sent via international organisations, to rescue wounded Palestinians in Gaza City.

An air strike on Gaza City's western al-Nasser area killed five people. Medics reported 16 more deaths in strikes on houses in central Gaza, bringing Sunday's death toll to at least 21.

The Palestinian health ministry said in a statement that at least 77 people have been killed by Israeli fire in the past 24 hours. The latest deaths bring the number of people killed by Israeli forces since the genocide began in October 2023 to 66,005.

Israel's military siege has caused a humanitarian catastrophe across Gaza. Four health facilities in Gaza City have shut down this month, the World Health Organisation has said. A number of malnutrition centres have also closed, the UN said.