‘At least 42 killed’ in Gaza strikes, as Israeli man shot dead in West Bank
At least 42 people have been killed in Israeli attacks in Gaza, the director of the Hamas-run government media office has said.
An Israeli strike on houses in Al Shati refugee camp in Gaza City killed 24 people, Ismail Al Thawabta told Reuters.
Another 18 Palestinians were killed in a strike on houses in the city’s Al Tuffah neighbourhood, he added.
The Israeli military confirmed in a statement on Saturday that IDF fighter jets “struck two Hamas military infrastructure sites in the area of Gaza City”, while saying it would release more details later.
Hamas did not comment on whether its military infrastructure had been hit, as per the Israeli claim.
Hamas said the attacks targeted the civilian population. The group vowed in a statement: “The occupation and its Nazi leaders will pay the price for their violations against our people.”
Footage showed dozens of Palestinians rushing to search for victims amid the destroyed houses in the Shati refugee camp.
It comes after the Hamas-run health ministry said at least 25 Palestinians were killed in Mawasi in western Rafah and 50 wounded on Friday.
Palestinians said a tank shell hit a tent housing displaced families.
The Israeli military said: “An initial inquiry conducted suggests that there is no indication that a strike was carried out by the IDF [Israel Defence Forces] in the Humanitarian Area in Al Mawasi.”
Strike in Lebanon and shooting in West Bank
A separate Israeli strike in Lebanon’s eastern Bekaa Valley on Saturday killed a member of the military wing of the Islamic Group, a Sunni Muslim faction closely allied with Hamas, according to the group.
It was the seventh member killed by Israeli strikes since the war began.
Meanwhile, an Israeli man was shot dead in a Palestinian town in the northern West Bank, according to Israel’s army.
The army said the man was pronounced dead in the town of Qalqilya and Israeli troops were currently occupying the area.
Israeli forces shot dead two militants in the same West Bank town on Friday.
Israeli nationals are prohibited from entering the town and other areas of the West Bank that fall under the authority of the Palestinian Authority (PA).
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There have been flare-ups of violence in the West Bank since the Israel-Hamas war erupted last October.
Since then at least 549 Palestinians in the territory have been killed by Israeli fire, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry.
In the same period of time, Palestinians in the West Bank have killed at least nine Israelis, including five soldiers, according to UN data.
Hamas says more than 37,500 Palestinians killed in Gaza
The war between Israel and Hamas erupted when Hamas militants attacked southern Israel, killing around 1,200 people and taking 250 others hostage.
Israel bombed and invaded Gaza in response, killing more than 37,500 people there, according to the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry, which does not distinguish between combatants and civilians in its count.
After more than eight months of war, Israel’s advance is focused on the last two areas its forces are yet to seize: Rafah on Gaza’s southern edge and the area surrounding Deir Al Balah in the centre of the territory.