Fierce fighting in northern Gaza as aid starts to roll off US-built pier

Smoke rises in northern Gaza, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas, as seen from Israel, May 17, 2024. REUTERS/Shannon Stapleton

CAIRO (Reuters): Israeli forces battled Hamas fighters in the narrow alleyways of Jabalia in northern Gaza on Friday (May 17) in some of the fiercest engagements since they returned to the area a week ago, while in the south fighters attacked tanks massing around Rafah.

Residents said Israeli armour had thrust as far as the market at the heart of Jabalia, the largest of Gaza's eight historic refugee camps, and that bulldozers were demolishing homes and shops in the path of the advance.