Israeli army strikes Gaza with more than 100,000 artillery shells since Oct. 27

JERUSALEM

The Israeli army said Tuesday that it had struck the Gaza Strip with more than 100,000 artillery shells since Oct. 27.

“More than 100,000 artillery shells have been fired since the start of the ground maneuver,” the army said in a statement.

It stressed that the artillery plays a “central role” in the fighting as they “provide intense fire cover for the forces participating in the ground maneuver in the Gaza Strip."

The army said that its ground forces are conducting military operations in the Jabalia area in the northern Gaza Strip.

Israel expanded its ground offensive in the Gaza Strip on Oct. 27 as part of its military operation in the Palestinian territory following a cross-border attack by Hamas on Oct. 7.

Israel resumed its onslaught on the Gaza Strip on Friday after the end of a weeklong humanitarian pause with the Palestinian group Hamas.

At least 15,899 Palestinians have been killed and more than 42,000 others injured in relentless air and ground attacks on the enclave since Oct. 7, according to Gaza’s health authorities.

The Israeli death toll in the Hamas attack stood at 1,200, according to official figures.

*Writing by Mahmoud Barakat