At least 38 people have been killed and dozens injured in Israeli strikes in the Gaza Strip on Saturday, according to medical sources. A Palestinian doctor and four of his sons were among the dead.
The doctor and his family were reportedly killed in an Israeli drone strike that hit a tent in the coastal Al‑Mawasi area of western Khan Younis on Saturday.
The tent was one of hundreds crammed with displaced civilians who had been driven from their homes earlier in the war.
In a nearby strike, a Palestinian man and his only son were also killed when another tent was hit.
Seven people were killed and many injured in an Israeli strike on a school-turned-shelter in the Zeitoun neighborhood of Gaza City, a medical source claimed.
Elsewhere, three people, including a woman, lost their lives in separate Israeli attacks in Gaza City and Jabalia al-Balad in northern Gaza.
Medical sources say the number of injured from the attacks continues to rise as health services in the area have nearly collapsed under the weight of months of Israeli bombardment and siege.
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In Gaza City, Israeli missiles struck two schools that had been turned into shelters for families fleeing bombardment. Seven people were killed in the Zaytun neighbourhood, while three others—including two children—were killed in Sheikh Ridwan.
In central Gaza, two siblings were killed in a drone strike on a residential building in al‑Bureij refugee camp. A separate strike on a home in the nearby Maghazi refugee camp killed two more civilians.
Despite repeated international calls for a ceasefire and adherence to international law, Israel continues its military campaign in Gaza, which has now killed more than 57,338 Palestinians, the majority of them women and children, since October 2023.
A ministry statement said that 70 bodies were brought to hospitals in the last 24 hours, with 332 people injured, taking the number of injuries to 135,957 in the Israeli onslaught.
“Many victims are still trapped under the rubble and on the roads as rescuers are unable to reach them,” it added.
The Israeli offensive has caused widespread destruction, mass displacement, hunger, and disease.
The International Criminal Court (ICC) issued arrest warrants last November for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defence Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity. In addition, Israel faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice (ICJ).
In Paris, French President Emmanuel Macron and Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim issued a joint statement backing an immediate ceasefire in Gaza and the unhindered entry of humanitarian aid. Macron said: “We are working with several parties, among them Saudi (Arabia), towards this. For now, Israel must allow for aid to reach Gaza.”
Anwar reiterated his support for the two-state solution and warned of Western double standards in the region.
“If you say no to Iran, (and) you say yes to Israel, we have a problem; try and resolve that,” he said. “But I agree with you, we must impress upon Iran to use this for peaceful methods and peaceful means and allow for inspection, which they have given a commitment.”
Both leaders also voiced support for a ceasefire in Ukraine, urging a peaceful resolution to that conflict as well. Anwar is continuing his diplomatic tour with a visit to Brazil.
The ongoing conflict continues to cost Israel’s regime in lives as, on Friday, the Israeli army confirmed that two of its soldiers were killed and two others were seriously injured in the Gaza Strip amid heavy fighting with the Palestinian armed group Hamas.
According to official Israeli figures, 883 Israeli soldiers have been killed and 6,032 others wounded during ground assaults since the start of its war on the Palestinian enclave on Oct. 7, 2023.
