Shelling and explosions in the Gaza Strip have been ongoing overnight as Israel expands both ground operations and air and navy shelling. The war seems to have now entered a new phase as the Israeli army announced that is expanding ground operations and Hamas has confirmed that hand-to-hand fighting is taking place inside Gaza.

“We are facing Israeli ground incursions in Beit Hanoun (north) and Bureij (central Gaza). Fierce clashes are ongoing,” the Ezzedine Al-Qassam Brigades, Hamas’ armed wing, said in a statement.

Late at night, the sky over Gaza was orange-red from explosions and fires caused by Israeli strikes, according to images released by AFP. Al Jazeera, which broadcast live footage overnight, said Israeli airstrikes hit areas around Al Shifa Central Hospital where Hamas’ operations center is believed to be located below. Continuous explosions continued for hours, but with communications cut off, the number of casualties and further details cannot be known.

Gaza communications continue to be cut off

The disruption of communications in the Gaza Strip is almost total. Telephone networks and the Internet have been largely disrupted, according to the Palestine Telecommunications Company.

.The Committee to Protect Journalists issued a statement saying “a communications blackout is also a news blackout” that can lead to “serious consequences,” including the spread of misinformation.

“In this dark hour, we stand with journalists, those seekers of truth whose daily work keeps us abreast of events that shed light on the human condition and help hold power accountable,” he said.

IDF: The head of the Hamas air force is dead

During the night, according to the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) and Security Authorities (ISA), Israeli warplanes they killed the head of the Hamas air command, Asem Abu Rakaba.

Abu Rakaba was responsible for Hamas’ UAVs, drones, paragliders, aerial reconnaissance and air defense. He was also involved in planning the massacre in the communities surrounding the Gaza Strip on October 7. He directed terrorists who infiltrated Israel by parachuting and was responsible for drone attacks on IDF positions.

Hamas ready to counter Israeli attacks with ‘all its might’

Hamas said on Saturday that its fighters in Gaza were ready to face Israeli attacks with “all their might” after Israel stepped up its air and ground attacks, Reuters reports.

“The Al-Qassam Brigades and all Palestinian resistance forces are fully prepared to face aggression [του Ισραήλ] in full force and thwart his incursions. Netanyahu and his defeated army will not be able to achieve any military victory,” Hamas said, referring to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

The shelling is “the heaviest since the start of the war on October 7,” Hamas said, accusing Israel of “preparing for massacres.”