Several Israeli soldiers killed in southern Gaza's Rafah: Hamas

Al-Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of Hamas, said on Monday that it killed several Israeli soldiers and wounded some others in the southern Gaza Strip city of Rafah, reported Xinhua.

Al-Qassam said in a statement that its members blew up a booby-trapped house in the city's Shaboura camp, where an Israeli force was holed up, leaving some Israeli soldiers dead and wounded.

It added that its fighters also targeted the Israeli reinforcements with mortar shells as they arrived to assist.

An Israeli helicopter landed to evacuate the dead and wounded as the artillery shelling continued, local sources and eyewitnesses told Xinhua.

There was no immediate comment from the Israeli army on this incident.

Also on Monday, Israeli media reported that a "difficult event" occurred in Rafah because of the collapse of a multi-story building with Israeli soldiers inside it, without revealing further details.

Israel launched a large-scale offensive against Hamas in Gaza to retaliate against a Hamas rampage through the southern Israeli border on Oct. 7, 2023, during which about 1,200 people were killed and around 250 were taken hostage.