JERUSALEM 

The Israeli army avoided early Friday repeating its previous statement on the launch of a ground operation in Gaza, instead saying attacks were continuing.

Israel Army Foreign Press Spokesperson Jonathan Conricust had earlier said that a ground operation had been launched in the Gaza Strip.

Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) spokesperson Avichay Adraee told Anadolu Agency that he could not confirm the ground operation but could only say that an air and land attack has been launched on the Gaza Strip.

He said he could not deny, confirm or comment on Conricust's remarks.

Israel continues to target Gaza with heavy bombardment, killing 103 Palestinians so far, including 27 children and 11 women, according to health officials. At least 580 others have been injured in addition to heavy damage to residential buildings across the enclave.

Tensions have been running high in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood in occupied East Jerusalem over the past month as Israeli settlers swarmed in following a court order for the eviction of Palestinian families in the area.

Israel occupied East Jerusalem during the 1967 Arab-Israeli war and annexed the entire city in 1980 -- a move that has never been recognized by the international community.

*Writing by Dilan Pamuk in Ankara