Israel says it has launched a “limited ground operation” to retake part of a key corridor in Gaza.
The move appeared to deepen a renewed Israeli offensive that shattered a ceasefire with Hamas that had begun in January.
As part of the ceasefire, Israel had withdrawn from the Netzarim corridor, which bisected northern Gaza from the south and had been used by Israeli forces as a military zone.
It came as an international United Nations worker was killed and five others wounded in a strike on a UN guesthouse in the Gaza Strip.
Jorge Moreira da Silva, head of the UN Office for Project Services, declined to say who carried out the strike that killed the worker in the central city of Deir al Balah but said the explosive ordnance was “dropped or fired” and the blast was not accidental or related to demining activity.
The UN body, known as UNOPS, carries out infrastructure and development projects around the world.
The Israel Defence Forces (IDF), which has carried out a massive series of airstrikes throughout Gaza since early Tuesday, denied earlier reports that it had targeted the UN compound.
At least 436 people, including 183 children and 94 women, have been killed since Israel launched the fresh wave of strikes, the Gaza Health Ministry said.
The IDF claims it only targets militants and blames civilian deaths on Hamas because it operates in densely populated areas. Gaza’s health ministry records do not distinguish between civilians and combatants.
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