A tank is seen on a major route in Gaza as Israeli soldiers advance farther north

 A tank is seen on a major route in Gaza as Israeli soldiers advance farther north

According to Palestinian witnesses, Israeli soldiers have advanced further into the northern Gaza Strip, momentarily blocking a southward escape route with tanks.

After one tank was shown on camera on Salah al-Din Road, there was conjecture that it was a part of the assault on Gaza City.

In a video, an automobile was seen approaching the tank, turning around, and then seeming to catch fire and explode.

Subsequently, the Israeli military said that a ground operation throughout the night freed a soldier who was being held captive by Hamas.

Pte Ori Megidish was said to be "doing well," and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu celebrated her release as a "exciting achievement" that demonstrated Israel's resolve to liberate the other more than 230 captives.

Additionally, Netanyahu denounced as "cruel psychological propaganda" a film that Hamas had issued, in which three more Israeli women in captive in Gaza were shown pleading with him to accept a prisoner swap.

On October 7, during an enormous onslaught on southern Israel that claimed 1,400 lives, Hamas terrorists captured the captives, who included scores of youngsters, the elderly, and soldiers.

After three weeks of heavy shelling, Israel launched what Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu referred to as the "second stage" of a campaign meant to eliminate Hamas over the weekend. Ground troops expanded their operations inside Gaza.

Since then, more than 8,300 people have died in Gaza, according to the health ministry operated by Hamas, and the region's 2.2 million inhabitants have critically low supplies of food, water, fuel, and medications.

Additionally, Mr. Netanyahu has rejected demands for a cease-fire in Gaza, stating that doing so would amount to "surrendering to barbarism, to terrorism, and to Hamas."

He said during a press conference on Monday, "Today we draw a line between the agents of civilisation and the forces of insanity." "Israel will not give up until it defeats the forces of barbarism. I pray and hope that all civilized countries would support our battle."

In order to provide supplies to the besieged zone, humanitarian organizations have consistently demanded a stop in hostilities.

Photographer Yousef Basam shared the footage of the tank on Salah al-Din Road after taking a Monday morning drive north.

The video shows Basam's vehicle stopping just after the Netzarim Junction crossing, which is located around 3 km south of Gaza City and 2.8 km (1.75 miles) from the perimeter line with Israel.

Then he pans in to see a stalled tank and what seem to be heaps of soil in the center of the road in front of another car that is slowing down.

The second vehicle makes a three-point turn as the tank begins to move. Then, just before an explosion strikes the automobile, a flash is observed coming from the tank's direction.

"He's gone, the whole family is gone," exclaims a man inside Basam's vehicle as it swiftly drives off and heads back south.

After an airstrike, a photojournalist who was in the vicinity told the BBC, "Suddenly I looked back and I saw Israeli tanks." He shot a few photos before running away.

At a briefing, the top spokeswoman for the Israeli military was questioned directly about the tanks and refused to elaborate.

We've increased the scope of our operations to include troops, armor, and offensive operations within the Gaza Strip. Rear Adm Daniel Hagari said, "The arrangement is done to accomplish the two main goals of the war, which are defeating Hamas and obtaining the release of the kidnapped individuals."

"While I cannot provide specific information here, I can assure you that safeguarding the safety of our forces remains our top priority."

The Israeli military had earlier claimed that throughout the course of the night, it had expanded its ground operations inside Gaza with tanks and infantry, killing scores of Hamas militants who had barricaded themselves in houses and tunnels.

It also said that over the preceding 24 hours, 600 more "terror targets" had been struck by air and artillery attacks, including weapons depots, anti-tank missile launch sites, and hiding places.

According to Rushdi Abu Alouf of the BBC, who is now in Khan Younis in the south, the event on Salah al-Din Road was noteworthy since it temporarily divided Gaza in half.

He said that fewer airstrikes had occurred in the south during the previous day, suggesting that Israeli troops were concentrating on their push into the north.

Despite orders from the Israeli military to leave and go south of the Wadi Gaza river for their own safety, it is estimated that there are still around 600,000 Palestinians living in the north.

Ten hospitals in northern Gaza, according to the UN, have been ordered to evacuate despite housing thousands of patients and 117,000 displaced people. It has issued a warning that hospital evacuations cannot be carried out without putting patient lives at jeopardy.

At Gaza City's southern Tal al-Hawa sector, Al-Quds Hospital is said to house around 400 patients and 14,000 displaced persons. Witnesses report that the Israeli bombardment has been particularly harsh in the last several days.

On Monday, there were further reports of strikes close to Al-Quds Hospital in Gaza City. According to the hospital's staff, they are unable to comply with an Israeli directive to remove hundreds of patients—some of whom are critically ill—as well as thousands of displaced civilians who are seeking refuge there.

On Monday morning, the Palestinian Red Crescent released a video purporting to show further airstrikes in the vicinity of the hospital.

Additionally, the director of Tal al-Hawa's Turkish-Palestinian Friendship Hospital said that an Israeli attack nearby on Sunday night had caused damage to the facility.

Similar worries are held for both patients and workers at Al Shifa, the largest hospital in Gaza City, where the head of surgery has called the situation "catastrophic."

In a phone message to the BBC on Sunday afternoon, Dr. Marwan Abusada declared that Al-Shifa was "overwhelmed" with patients and that 55,000 displaced people were "being present in each square metre".

Over the weekend, he added, some 100 people were transferred to other hospitals. "However, we continue to get an enormous number of instances. We get a large number of wounded persons every thirty minutes."

Hamas has been charged by the Israeli military of purposefully placing themselves close to or even inside of public structures like hospitals. That accusation has been denied by Hamas.

Thomas White, the head of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (Unrwa) in Gaza, told the BBC that everyone has an obligation to uphold international law in order to protect people requesting sanctuary inside medical institutions and UN buildings like schools.

"The reality is that many individuals in the north can't move because they really do not have the transportation, they lack the means," he said.

In addition, he issued a warning, saying that Sunday's theft of wheat, hygiene supplies, and other goods from Unrwa warehouses in central and southern Gaza demonstrated how "the social fabric of Gaza is starting to break" in addition to the desperation of the people to survive without food and clean water.

In addition, Mr. White said that the 33 more assistance trucks that arrived on Sunday from Egypt—carrying food, water, and medical supplies—were "not going to meet the requirements of Gaza."

"We need hundreds of trucks driving into Gaza every day," he said. "But what we are very concerned with now is that the public sector as well as the private sector will collapse."