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As part of the ceasefire, Israel had withdrawn from the Netzarim corridor, which bisected northern Gaza from the south and had been used by Israeli forces as a military zone.
Image: A map showing the Netzarim corridor
It came as an international United Nations worker from Bulgaria was killed and five others seriously 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.
Oren Marmorstein, spokesman for Israel’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, told Sky News that the country carried out an initial investigation which found there was “no connection” between the strike and the Israel Defense Forces (IDF).
Speaking to Mark Austin on the News Hour, he said: “Of course, we express our sorrow when it comes to the death of a Bulgarian citizen, a UN worker.
“But no connection has been found. And even more so, we are now working in order to evacuate the body and the wounded will be treated in hospitals in Israel.”
Mr Marmorstein did not say who Israel believes is responsible for the strike but said it may be connected to a “terrorist organisation”.
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0:58 ‘We didn’t expect a bomb to fall on us again’
The IDF, which has carried out a massive series of airstrikes throughout Gaza since early on Tuesday, had earlier denied reports that it had targeted the UN compound.
But Mr Moreira da Silva said strikes had hit near the compound on Monday and struck it directly on Tuesday and again on Wednesday, when the worker was killed.
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24:28 Why is Israel bombing Gaza?
He said the agency had contacted the IDF after the first strike and confirmed that it was aware of the facility’s location.
The UN’s secretary general Antonio Guterres said he was “deeply saddened” by the staff member’s death and condemned attacks on UN personnel.
The war in Gaza has been among the deadliest conflicts ever for humanitarian workers, according to the UN.
Image: Israeli troops in southern Gaza. Pic: IDF handout 
Image: Pic: IDF handout
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.
Mr Marmorstein insisted on Sky News that the figures are “anything but accurate”.
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.
Image: Palestinians fleeing their homes after the Israeli army issued evacuation orders for several neighbourhoods. Pic: Reuters
Meanwhile, the Israeli army said it had overnight attacked a Hamas military site from which the militant group planned to launch strikes into Israel.
The IDF targeted the site in northern Gaza as it was where “preparations were being made to fire projectiles at Israeli territory”, the military said in a statement.
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The Israeli navy also struck several vessels in the coastal area of Gaza as they were intended to be used for “terrorist activities”, the IDF claimed.
Israel issued fresh evacuation orders on Wednesday for different areas across the Gaza Strip and told people to move to known shelters in Khan Younis and western Gaza City.
Netanyahu needs quick results or Trump might not be so supportive
Israel is facing increasing international opposition to its new assault on Gaza, and from some of its close allies including Britain and France whose leaders have both voiced concerns today.
But in actions, and words, the Israeli government is defying those calling for it to stop the attacks.
The Israel Defense Forces has announced what it describes as “limited” ground operations in central and southern Gaza, but limited for how long?
Israel’s defence minister has warned of “total devastation” if Hamas doesn’t surrender.
Beyond the threats, it’s not clear what Israel’s strategy is.
The government failed to achieve its two war aims – to eliminate Hamas and return the hostages – during fifteen and a half months of brutal fighting, so how will it have more success now?
One answer might be Netanyahu’s belief that President Trump won’t try to rein him in as Joe Biden did.
But for how long will the White House support a new phase of the war in Gaza?
Trump is an impatient man, and he wants a Gaza peace deal as part of his wider ambitions to resolve the world’s conflicts.
If Netanyahu’s new offensive doesn’t deliver quick results, the White House might not remain so supportive.
The latest strikes come weeks after the end of the first phase of the ceasefire, during which Israel and Hamas exchanged hostages for prisoners and were set to negotiate an extension to the truce that was meant to bring about an eventual end to the war. But those negotiations never got off the ground.
Hamas has demanded that Israel stick to the terms of the initial ceasefire deal, including a full withdrawal from Gaza and an end to the war.
Image: Palestinians search for their belongings among the rubble of their destroyed homes, following Israeli airstrikes on Khan Yunis. Pic: AP
Israel, which has vowed to defeat Hamas, has put forward a new proposal that would extend the truce and free more hostages held by Hamas, without a commitment to end the war.
During the ceasefire period, 33 hostages were released, along with nearly 1,800 Palestinian prisoners.
There are 59 hostages still in captivity, of whom Israel believes 35 are dead.
More than one million people risked being left without food parcels in March if aid was not allowed into Gaza, the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) reported the Food Security Sector as saying.
The war, sparked by Hamas’ 7 October 2023 killing of 1,200 people and capture of 250 more in southern Israel, has killed more than 48,000 Palestinians in the Strip, Gazan health officials say.
