DEIR ALBALA, Gaza Strip (AP) – Israeli airstrikes hit Gaza on Wednesday, killing at least 24 Palestinians, including two infants, according to the Gaza Strip’s health authorities. fragile ceasefire Tensions are increasing. Israel said it killed three militant leaders and others who posed a threat to its forces, and seriously injured one soldier in some attacks carried out in response to Hamas attacks.
deadly attack on israel It has repeatedly disrupted the ceasefire since it took effect on October 10. Increase in Palestinian casualties Many people in Gaza say it feels like the war continues unabated.
Hospital officials said at least five children, seven women and one emergency worker on duty were among the Palestinians killed on Wednesday.
“The genocidal war against the people of the Gaza Strip continues,” said Dr. Mohamed Abu Selmiyya, head of Gaza City. Shifa Hospitalin a Facebook post. “Where’s the ceasefire? Where’s the mediator?”
Israel strongly denies such accusations. commit genocide In Gaza. the war has begun On October 7, 2023, thousands of Hamas-led militants poured into southern Israel in a surprise rocket attack, killing 1,200 people, most of them civilians, and abducting 251 others.
Deadly attacks continue despite ceasefire agreement
The ceasefire agreement sought to halt the war between Israel and Hamas, which has been going on for more than two years. Although the heaviest fighting has subsided, it has been wracked by repeated escalations of violence.
A total of 556 Palestinians have been killed by Israel and 1,500 injured since the ceasefire took effect, Gaza health officials said. According to the Gaza Ministry of Health, those killed included 197 children and 82 women. The Israeli military said four soldiers have been killed since the start of the ceasefire.
The Israeli military says the airstrikes are in response to Hamas’ ceasefire violations and militant attacks on soldiers. Eight Arab and Islamic countries, including mediators Egypt and Qatar, recently condemned Israel’s “repeated violations” of the agreement.
An Israeli military official told The Associated Press on condition of anonymity in line with military policy that Israel’s latest attack was in response to militant gunfire that seriously injured a reservist on Wednesday morning.
11 people, including 2 children, killed in early morning strike
At least 11 people, most from the same family, were killed when Israeli forces opened fire on a building in northern Gaza’s Tufa district, according to Shifa Hospital, which received the bodies. The dead included the two parents, their 10-day-old daughter Wateen Habaz, their 5-month-old cousin Mila Habaz, and the children’s grandmother.
The Israeli military said the attack was a real-time response to gunfire targeting soldiers.
On Wednesday morning, mourners gathered in the courtyard of Shifa Hospital for funeral prayers.
“What did this child do? … Why kill children?” asked Mohammad Jasel, a relative of the family.
“We don’t understand why this is happening to us. What should we do? Where are we going? This is not life,” he said.
Two young children were seen kneeling over their father’s body as a woman bid him farewell. A young girl kissed a dead man on the cheek.
Attacks on Gaza continue on Wednesday
At least three people were killed and 10 injured in an attack on a tent in the Mwasi district of Khan Younis, according to a field hospital run by the Palestinian Red Crescent Society in the area. According to the hospital, among the dead was Hussein Hassan Hussein Alsemieri, an emergency worker who was working at the time.
The Israeli military said the attack targeted and killed Hamas platoon commander Bilal Abu Assi, who led the deadly attack on Kibbutz Nir Oz in an October 7 raid. He said he used surveillance, precision weapons and other means to avoid attacks on bystanders, adding: “We regret that civilians who were not involved were harmed.”
Another attack in Khan Yunis left three people dead.
Nasser Hospital, which received the bodies, said the dead included a 12-year-old boy who died in an attack on his family’s tent. Israeli military officials said the attack targeted three people who approached Israeli-controlled territory and posed an immediate danger to troops.
Another attack also took place at al-Shati refugee camp in Gaza City, killing one person and injuring another, health officials at Shifa Hospital said. The Israeli military has announced that it has killed the Hamas cell leader responsible for killing soldiers abducted from the observatory in Nahal Oz during an October 2023 raid. Hamas has announced that it has targeted militant Mohammed Issam Hassan al-Khabir after a night of gunfire.
Israel said the third militant killed on Wednesday was an Islamic Jihad leader in northern Gaza.
The Gaza Health Ministry said Wednesday’s attack left a total of at least 38 Palestinians injured.
Rafah border crossing is minimal
The opening of the Rafah border crossing on Monday was hailed as a step forward for the world. fragile ceasefire. But since then, Palestinian traffic through the intersection has been blocked. Delays, interrogations and uncertainty About who is allowed to cross.
It took all day on Tuesday for 40 Palestinians to enter Gaza. They finally arrived at Nasser Hospital in Khan Yunis around 1 a.m. Wednesday and were greeted by their families.
Fifteen patients and 31 of their relatives from the Gaza Strip were scheduled to cross into Egypt on Wednesday, but more than half were turned away, said Raed Al-Nims, a spokesman for the Palestinian Red Crescent Society. The North Sinai government confirmed that some people had been allowed to enter Egypt, but did not provide numbers. It was unclear whether Palestinians had been allowed into Gaza by evening, and the World Health Organization did not respond to requests for updated information.
Despite minimal traffic, European Union officials said the Rafah border crossing remained open. The official, tasked with communicating on behalf of the EU, spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to give his name. An EU delegation and Palestinian workers were present at the crossing.
Three women who entered Gaza on Monday told The Associated Press the next day that Israeli forces blindfolded and handcuffed them, then interrogated and threatened them, holding them for several hours before being released.
EU officials said border inspectors were not aware of any confiscation of baggage or abuse by Israeli soldiers or Palestinians in border areas.
Asked about the report, the Israeli military said it was “not aware of any incidents of inappropriate conduct, abuse, arrests, or confiscation of property by Israeli security services.”
The ceasefire agreement is progressing smoothly.
All fighting has not stopped, but some ceasefire agreements have moved forward.
Hamas has released all the hostages it was holding, and in return Israel has released thousands of Palestinians and begun reopening Rafah. The amount of humanitarian aid flowing into Gaza is increasing, and a new technical committee has been appointed to manage day-to-day operations in the Gaza Strip.
But other key elements of the ceasefire appear to have stalled, including deploying international security forces, disarming Hamas, and rebuilding Gaza. The United States has not provided a timeline for when these parts of the agreement will be completed.
According to the Gaza Health Ministry, which does not distinguish between combatants and civilians, more than 71,800 Palestinians have been killed since the war began. The ministry, which is part of the Hamas-led government, maintains detailed casualty records that are generally considered reliable by United Nations agencies and independent experts.
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Magdy reported from Cairo and Frankel from Jerusalem. Associated Press writer Sam McNeil contributed from Brussels.