Israel army says 'significant Hamas terrorists' struck in Khan Younis

The Israeli Air Force (IAF) has struck "significant" members of Palestinian militant organization Hamas in the southern Gaza city of Khan Younis, the Israeli military said early on Tuesday.

"A short while ago... the IAF struck significant Hamas terrorists who were operating within a command and control center embedded inside the Humanitarian Area in Khan Yunis," the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) said in a Telegram post.

"The terrorists advanced and carried out terror attacks against IDF troops and the state of Israel," the post continued, adding that "numerous steps were taken to mitigate the risk of harming civilians."

"The terrorist organizations in the Gaza Strip continue to systematically abuse civilian and humanitarian infrastructure, including the designated Humanitarian Area, to carry out terrorist activity against the State of Israel and IDF troops," the post said.

Israel has repeatedly justified attacks on such facilities citing intelligence saying that Hamas operatives are hiding there, using civilians as shields.

The information released by the IDF could not be independently verified.

According to the Hamas-controlled health authority, more than 40,000 people have been killed and more than 98,000 others injured in Gaza during 11 months of war. The figures do not distinguish between civilians and fighters and cannot be independently verified at present.

The Gaza war was triggered by the worst massacre in Israel's history, with more than 1,200 dead, carried out by terrorists from Hamas and other extremist groups on October 7.