The Israeli military said its ground forces were expanding their activities in Gaza Friday night. The announcement came hours after Israeli forces conducted a second ground raid as many days and after Israel’s defense minister said the country expects to launch a long and difficult ground invasion of the Hamas-ruled territory.

The development also came after communication services in the Gaza Strip were cut, following a heavy round of Israeli airstrikes that lit up the night sky over the darkened territory.

The Palestinian death toll passed 7,300 as Israel launched waves of airstrikes in response to the Hamas raid in southern Israel on Oct. 7. The Health Ministry in Gaza, which tracks the toll, released a detailed list, including names and ID numbers on Thursday. In the occupied West Bank, more than 110 Palestinians have been killed in violence and Israeli raids since the war's start three weeks ago.

Doctors in Gaza say conditions have reached catastrophic levels. They say a lack of basic supplies has left them struggling to maintain hygiene and sanitation, and hospital grounds are overcrowded with displaced civilians seeking refuge from Israeli airstrikes.

"We have noticed an increase in premature birth cases," said Dr. Nasser Bulbul, head of the NICU at al-Shifa Hospital.

"We had to perform a premature delivery of the fetus from the mother’s womb while she’s dying," he said. "Many of these infants are orphaned, and we don’t know the fate of their relatives or have information about their identities."

Around 50,000 pregnant women are caught up in the conflict, with around 5,500 due to give birth within the next 30 days, according to the United Nations Population Fund.

If fuel supplies run out, neonatal intensive care units will be impacted and planned or emergency caesarean sections will be impossible, the U.N. agency said.

Meanwhile, White House National Security spokesman John Kirby repeatedly refused to comment on Israel saying its ground forces were expanding activity in Gaza and also refused to comment on what a satisfactory long-term objective might be for the fighting.

"We’re not drawing red lines for Israel," Kirby said Friday on a call with reporters. "We’re going to continue to support them" but "since the very beginning we have, and will continue to have, conversations about the manner that they are doing this."

Kirby said the U.S. is still evaluating the impact of airstrikes and "we will not hesitate to take further actions in our own self-defense."

He also said 10 additional trucks filled with humanitarian aid had made it to Gaza, bringing the total to 84, but that the U.S. is aware that fuel there "is only anticipated to last a couple of days."

The White House previously said President Joe Biden was briefed Friday morning by his national security team on the latest developments in Israel and Gaza.

On Friday, aid groups said the communications blackout in the Gaza Strip has not only left them unable to contact their staff, but has also impeded their operations in the territory.

"It doesn’t only mean that Gaza is isolated from the world but also it means people can’t connect to each other. Our emergency line is down so people are literally not able to call an ambulance," said Nebal Farsakh, a spokesperson for the Palestinian Red Crescent. "We are extremely worried because we are completely cut off from our teams."

The International Committee of the Red Cross also said it's currently unable to reach its staff in Gaza.

"We are deeply worried for their safety and the safety of all civilians where hostilities are taking place. Without access to information in a communication blackout, people don’t know where to go for safety," the organization said in a statement. "Blackouts impede humanitarian and medical personnel from working safely and effectively."

The Palestinian telecom provider Paltel says internet service in Gaza Strip has been cut off by Israeli bombardment. Services were cut Friday evening, following a heavy round of Israeli airstrikes that lit up the night sky over the darkened territory.

Rights groups and journalists also say they lost contact with colleagues in the enclave. The Associated Press's attempts to contact people in Gaza did not go through.

The Israeli military on Friday said its ground forces were "expanding their activity" in the Gaza Strip, as the army moved closer to a full-on ground invasion of the besieged territory.

Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari, the army’s spokesman, said aerial attacks had been targeting Hamas tunnels and other targets.

"In addition to the attacks that we carried out in recent days, ground forces are expanding their activity this evening," he said. "The IDF is acting with great force ... to achieve the objectives of the war."

Israel has amassed hundreds of thousands of troops along the border with Gaza ahead of an expected ground offensive against the Hamas members.

Israel has been pounding Gaza with airstrikes since Hamas carried out a cross-border incursion on Oct. 7.