IDF destroys launch site placed in humanitarian zone, escalates operations in Rafah

The IDF destroyed a launch site on Thursday that was placed inside a humanitarian zone in Khan Yunis by the Palestinian Islamic Jihad and has continued its operations in Rafah, the IDF announced on Friday morning.

The launch site was placed inside a shelter located in the humanitarian zone. The Israeli Air Force then struck it from an aircraft. The IDF emphasized that before the strike, various measures were taken to mitigate harm to civilians.

"Terrorist organizations in the Gaza Strip continue to place weapons and terrorist infrastructure amid the civilian population, endangering them and using them as a human shield," the IDF said. 

IDF escalates activity in Rafah

Additionally, the IDF said that troops have been continuing to operate in the area of Rafah and have been working to eliminate terrorists there in close-quarters combat, conducting "precise, intelligence-based" actions in the area.  

Residents in the area said that Israelis appeared to be trying to complete their capture of Rafah, the city on the enclave's southern edge that has been the focus of an Israeli assault since early May.

Some residents said the pace of the Israeli raid has been accelerated in the past two days. They said sounds of explosions and gunfire indicating fierce fighting have been almost non-stop.

"The entire city of Rafah is an area of Israeli military operations," Ahmed Al-Sofi, the mayor of Rafah, said in a statement carried by Hamas media on Friday.

The IDF also announced on Friday that during further IDF activity in the Gaza Strip, an IAF aircraft eliminated Hamas terrorist Muhammad Abu Taha, who worked as a drone operator in the terror organization and carried out numerous attacks against the IDF. The IDF also identified several other terrorists and eliminated them in a drone strike. 

Additionally, the IDF said several tunnel shafts were located after conducting targeted raids.