Israeli forces push deeper into Gaza City as Hamas warns escalation threatens ceasefire talks

Israeli forces advanced deeper into the Gaza Strip's largest city on Monday in pursuit of militants it says have regrouped there, sending thousands of Palestinians fleeing from an area that was ravaged in the early weeks of the nine-month-long war.

Hamas warned that the latest raids and displacement in Gaza City could lead to the collapse of long-running negotiations over a ceasefire and hostage release, setting up a potential setback after reports that the two sides appear to have narrowed the gaps between them.

The military ordered evacuations ahead of the latest raids, but Palestinians said nowhere feels safe. Most of the population of 2.3 million has been displaced, often multiple times. Hundreds of thousands are packed into sweltering tent camps.

Israel ordered the evacuation of northern Gaza in the first weeks of the war and has prevented most people from returning. Hundreds of thousands of Palestinians are still living in shelters or the shells of homes.

"We fled in the darkness amid heavy strikes," said Sayeda Abdel-Baki, a mother of three who had sheltered with relatives in the Daraj neighbourhood. "This is my fifth displacement."

Residents reported artillery and tank fire, as well as airstrikes. Gaza's Health Ministry, with limited access to the north, did not immediately report casualties. The Hamas-run ministry says some 38,000 people in total have been killed by Israel's campaign, though it does not distinguish between civilians and combatants.

Israel issued additional evacuation orders for areas in other neighbourhoods of central Gaza City. The military said it had intelligence showing that militants from Hamas and the smaller Islamic Jihad group were in the area and called on residents to head south to the city