Israeli soldiers using tanks, bulldozers and helicopters have been engaged in a major incursion into the Gaza Strip town of Rafah.
Israeli military radio said that the army was moving
reinforcements into the town to seal it off.
The authorities in Israel have also closed the border between Egypt and the Gaza Strip. Rafah is on the border between the two, with Israel in control of the frontier on the Palestinian side.
Israel says it is pressing on with plans to destroy hundreds of homes in southern Gaza. It claims they have been used by Palestinian militants as shelter from which to attack troops.
