Intense Israeli strikes rock Gaza

The Israel army said ground forces were extending operations tonight’ in Gaza, as the internet and communications services collapsed

The Israeli military on Friday said its ground forces were "expanding their activity" in the Gaza Strip, as the army moved closer to a full-on ground invasion of the besieged territory.

The Israeli military told AFP it is "continuously striking in the Gaza Strip" against the militant group Hamas that rules the Palestinian territory.

"In the last hours, we intensified the attacks in Gaza," Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari told a televised news briefing.

He said the air force was conducting extensive strikes on tunnels and other infrastructure.

"In addition to the attacks carried out in the last few days, ground forces are expanding their operations tonight," he said, raising expectations that the long-anticipated ground invasion of Gaza may be beginning.

Palestinian telecoms provider Jawwal announced "the total cut of all communication services and internet" in the territory.

Services were cut on Friday evening, following a heavy round of Israeli airstrikes that lit up the night sky over the darkened territory.

The Palestinian Red Crescent, the main emergency service in Gaza, said it was cut off from its operations room in the strip because of the internet blackout.

The Hamas government's media office accused Israel of taking the measure "to perpetrate massacres with bloody retaliatory strikes from the air, land and sea," as heavy strike hit northern Gaza.

AFP journalists in Gaza confirmed they were only able to communicate in limited areas where they could connect to Israeli networks across the border.