The Israeli army says it now controls 40% of Gaza City and warns that the operation "will continue to intensify."

The Israeli military said Thursday it now controls 40 percent of Gaza City after more than three weeks of relentless bombing, hundreds of Palestinian deaths, and systematic demolitions of homes and other buildings, according to sources on the ground.

"You can see on screen an example of a detonation (...) in the Zeitun neighborhood, within Gaza City. Today we control 40% of the city. The operation will continue to expand and intensify in the coming days," Israeli military spokesperson Effie Defrin assured in a video message to the media, without giving further details.

Defrin added that combat teams from two brigades continue to fight in the Zeitun neighborhood, and that other infantry forces are maneuvering in the Sheikh Radwan neighborhood, north of Gaza City. "We continue to systematically attack Hamas infrastructure ," the spokesperson added.

According to health sources cited by the Qatari media outlet Al Jazeera, Israel killed 69 Gazans in attacks across the Strip on Thursday, including 39 in the besieged Gaza City. The total death toll since the Hamas terrorist attack on October 7, 2023, now exceeds 64,000.