The offensive left Gaza in ruins and killed more than 37,400 people
Gaza:
At least 42 people were killed in Israeli strikes in districts of Gaza City in the northern Palestinian enclave on Saturday, the director of the media office of the Hamas-run government said.
An Israeli attack on homes in Al-Shati, one of eight historic refugee camps in the Gaza Strip, killed 24 people, Ismail Al-Thawabta told Reuters. Another 18 Palestinians were killed in an attack on homes in the Al-Tuffah neighborhood.
The Israeli military released a brief statement saying: “A short time ago, IDF fighter jets attacked two Hamas military infrastructure sites in the Gaza City area.”
He said more details will be released soon.
Hamas did not comment on the Israeli claim of having hit its military infrastructure. He said in a statement that the attacks targeted the civilian population and promised in a statement that “the occupation and its Nazi leaders will pay the price for their violations against our people.”
Images obtained by Reuters showed dozens of Palestinians running in search of victims among the destroyed homes. Images showed destroyed homes, destroyed walls and debris and dust filling the streets of the Shati refugee camp.
Israel’s ground and air campaign in Gaza was triggered when Hamas invaded southern Israel on Oct. 7, killing about 1,200 people and taking more than 250 hostages, according to Israeli records.
The offensive left Gaza in ruins, killed more than 37,400 people, 101 of whom were killed in the last 24 hours, according to Palestinian health authorities, and left almost the entire population homeless and destitute.
More than eight months after the start of the war, Israel’s advance is now focused on the last two areas that its forces had not yet conquered: Rafah, in the extreme south of Gaza, and the area surrounding Deir al-Balah, in the center.
Residents said Israeli tanks have deepened their incursion into areas west and north of Rafah in recent days. On Saturday, Israeli forces bombarded several areas by air and land, forcing many families living in areas described as zones designated for humanitarian reasons to flee north.
The Israeli military said forces continued “precise and intelligence-based” targeted operations in Rafah, killing many Palestinian gunmen and dismantling military infrastructure.
On Friday, Gaza’s Health Ministry said at least 25 Palestinians were killed in Mawasi, west of Rafah, and 50 were injured. Palestinians said a tank shell hit a tent housing displaced families.
The Israeli military said the incident was under review. “An initial investigation carried out suggests that there is no indication that an attack was carried out by the IDF (Israel Defense Forces) in the Humanitarian Area in Al-Mawasi,” he stated.
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