Israel’s army says it is continuing its internationally criticized operations in the city of Rafah in the south of the Gaza Strip.

Casualties were again reported Wednesday, the Israeli military said on Thursday.

IDF troops carried out targeted raids in the area, located weapons and eliminated several terrorists in close combat, the army said in a statement.

Fighting also continued in the centre of the coastal area. According to the statement, people were also killed there, troops having “eliminated” more than 10 terrorists.

Among them was a Palestinian who, according to the army, was involved in the Hamas massacre on October 7 last year.

On Wednesday, “more than 45 terrorist targets throughout the Gaza Strip” were attacked from the air, the army added. Targets included armed groups, tunnels and rocket launchers.

None of the military’s claims could initially be independently verified.

The Gaza war was triggered by the worst massacre in Israel’s history, with more than 1,200 dead, carried out by terrorists from Hamas and other extremist groups in Israel on October 7 last year.

The actions of the Israeli army have been criticized internationally – especially the operations in Rafah on the border with Egypt. Many people had sought refuge from the war there.

According to the Hamas-controlled health authority, at least 37,232 people have been killed and a further 85,037 injured in the course of the Israeli offensive in the Gaza Strip. The figures, which do not distinguish between fighters and civilians, cannot be independently verified at present either.