Israel strikes high-rise building, threatens to hit more in Gaza

Deir al-Balah: Israel struck a high-rise building in Gaza City on Friday after an evacuation warning, as the military stepped up operations aimed at seizing control of the famine-stricken city of some 1 million Palestinians. Strikes elsewhere in Gaza City killed at least 27 people, health officials said.

The military accused Hamas militants of using other high-rises in the city for surveillance and planned ambushes, and said it would carry out “precise, targeted strikes” on militant infrastructure in the coming days. Israel has begun mobilising tens of thousands of reservists and is repeating evacuation warnings as part of its plan to widen its offensive, which has sparked opposition domestically and condemnation abroad.

Palestinians said Friday’s strike targeted the Mushtaha tower in Rimal, an upscale neighbourhood before the war. Gaza City resident Ahmed al-Boari said people fleeing Israeli operations elsewhere in city had sought shelter in and around the building.