Several still images from aerial views show Israeli armored vehicles and tanks just north of Khan Younis, the main city in southern Gaza. This is the first confirmation through satellite images of the ground incursion of Israeli troops into southern Gaza.

The images, taken on Sunday by Planet Labs PBC, show Israeli tanks and armored personnel carriers just under 6 kilometers (3.7 miles) north of the heart of Khan Younis, the most important city in the southern part of the Gaza Strip.

Many of those who fled the Israeli offensive and airstrike campaign in Gaza City , to the north, now live around this large city and other nearby areas after the Israeli army ordered them to evacuate. The Israeli deployment is located just west of the Salah Al Deen Highway, a main north-south corridor within the Gaza Strip that many used to flee.

An analysis by The Associated Press found positions in four groups, with about 150 armored personnel carriers, tanks and other vehicles in the area. Israeli soldiers have created rammed earth berms around some of their positions, which can be used as cover. They can be seen recent tank tracks on the groundsuggesting that the movements are recent.

According to the agency, The Israeli army declined to comment. about these images and their strategy for the offensive. However, the maneuver and the number of vehicles shown in the images suggest that the Israeli army was advancing towards the south, where there have already been reports hand to hand combat.

Since the end of the ceasefire, the Israeli army has launched a intense campaign of airstrikes and ground fighting in the southern Gaza Strip. Satellite photographs published by Planet Labs provide the first clear view of intensity and scope with which the Israelis are fighting.

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