Israeli forces advance into north, south Gaza areas

Israeli forces advanced further Sunday into the Shejaia neighbourhood of northern Gaza and also pushed deeper into western and central Rafah in the south, killing at least six Palestinians and destroying several homes, residents said.Israeli tanks, which moved back into Shejaia four days ago, fired shells towards several houses, leaving families trapped inside and unable to leave, the residents said.Speaking at a weekly cabinet meeting on Sunday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu repeated his stance that there is no substitute for victory in the war against the Palestinian resistance group Hamas.On Saturday the military announced the death of two Israeli soldiers in northern Gaza.The armed wing of Hamas and the allied Islamic Jihad reported fierce fighting in both Shejaia and Rafah, saying their fighters had fired anti-tank rockets and mortar bombs against Israeli forces operating there.Arab mediators' efforts, backed by the United States, have stalled. Hamas says any deal must end the war and bring a full Israeli withdrawal from Gaza. Israel says it will accept only temporary pauses in the fighting.Israel's offensive has so far killed nearly 38,000 people, according to the Gaza health ministry, and has left the heavily built-up coastal enclave in ruins.More than 300 Israeli soldiers have been killed in Gaza.Israeli tanks pushed deeper into several districts in the east, west and centre of Rafah, near the border with Egypt, and medics said six people had been killed in an Israeli strike on a house in Shaboura, in the heart of the city.The six bodies from the Zurub family were transferred to Nasser Hospital in the nearby city of Khan Younis, where dozens of relatives paid their respects.Residents said the Israeli army had torched the Al-Awda mosque in the centre of Rafah, one of the city's best-known.