The Palestinian Resistance is engaged in fierce battles with the Israeli occupation forces in the central and southern parts of the al-Zaytoun neighborhood in southeast Gaza, a field leader confirmed to Al Mayadeen.

The source emphasized that the battles are taking place in al-Mustawsaf Street in the center of the neighborhood and the vicinity of Ali Mosque and the UNRWA Clinic to its south.

Resistance fighters engaged several Israeli tanks with anti-tank rockets in the vicinity of al-Zaytoun Clinic, the source told Al Mayadeen, adding that the Israeli occupation army has turned the Clinic into a command and control center and is destroying homes nearby.

According to the field leader, Israeli occupation forces have expanded the scope of their artillery shelling to reach the north of the al-Zaytoun neighborhood, especially around the al-Hurriyya School and the Salah al-Din Mosque.

A new wave of displacement from most parts of the al-Zaytoun neighborhood has been observed, caused by the Israeli bombardment of several houses and the martyrdom of 12 Palestinians as a result, the field leader confirmed.

In a related context, Al Mayadeen's correspondent reported that at least eight Palestinians were killed in Israeli artillery and aerial bombardment in the al-Zaytoun neighborhood.

Our correspondent mentioned that the Israeli occupation forces are targeting people attempting to leave their homes with artillery and drones.

Meanwhile, the al-Quds Brigades, the military wing of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) movement, said its Resistance fighters attacked Israeli soldiers and military vehicles advancing in the vicinity of al-Zaytoun Clinic with mortar shells.

The Brigades also confirmed that its fighters targeted several Israeli military vehicles infiltrating Route 8 in the al-Zaytoun neighborhood with two highly explosive ground devices.

On its part, al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of Hamas, published a video of its fighters sniping at an Israeli soldier south of the al-Zaytoun neighborhood.

#بالفيديو | قنص جندي إسرائيلي جنوب حي الزيتون في مدينة #غزة.#الميادين #طوفان_الأقصى pic.twitter.com/cIxW4Ep4gy

— قناة الميادين (@AlMayadeenNews) May 10, 2024

Touching on the matter, Palestinian Resistance affairs expert Hani al-Dali told Al Mayadeen that the occupation military has no genuine tactical or operational objectives for raiding the al-Zaytoun neighborhood or other areas it has entered in Gaza.

He suggested that through this limited advance, the military aims to appease the extremist right-wing sentiments within the government of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, stressing that this confirms that the Palestinian Resistance holds the upper hand in every area of the Gaza Strip.

Read more: 5 Israeli troops killed in fiercest Rafah, Gaza confrontations