Israeli troops have killed dozens of Hamas gunmen during battles in Khan Younis over the last 24 hours, the military said.

The Israel Defense Forces said operations included an air strike on a Hamas weapons cache that set off secondary explosions.

For weeks, Israel has concentrated its military operations in Khan Younis, the hometown of Hamas’s leader Yahya Sinwar, who masterminded the Oct 7 attacks.

It comes as Israel prepares to move into the southern Gaza Strip city of Rafah, where some 1.4 million people have fled, as part of its mission to destroy Hamas.

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