CAIRO: An Israeli airstrike hit a tent inside a hospital compound in central Gaza,
killing at least five people, bringing the total of Palestinians killed on Sunday to
19, Gaza health officials said, after another round of talks ended without result.
The airstrike hit a tent area inside the Al-Aqsa Hospital compound, starting a fire,
and wounding at least 18 people in addition to the five killed, medical authorities
said.
The Israeli military said it struck a fighter who “conducted terror activities” and
that secondary explosions were identified, indicating weapons were present in the
area.
Its statement added it struck 50 military targets across the enclave in the last 24
hours, including fighters’ cells.
The hospital compound is in the Deir Al-Balah area, which is crowded with
thousands of people displaced by fighting in other parts of the enclave.
Elsewhere in Deir Al-Balah, three Palestinians were killed when an Israeli
missile struck a house, while eight other people were killed inside their home in
Jabalia camp in northern Gaza City and three inside a car in separate Israeli
strikes.
Reuters footage showed Palestinians trying to tackle the fire that broke out in the
tent encampment with water and small fire extinguishers.
Israeli forces have continued strikes and shelling in the Gaza Strip after
diplomatic efforts in Cairo on Saturday ended without progress and as Israel
braces for a serious escalation in the north.
Sirens went off in the area of Ashdod, further north than seen in recent weeks,
and the Israeli military said five rockets were launched from southern Gaza. No
injuries were reported.
The chances of a breakthrough appear slim as regional tension has soared
following the assassination of Hamas’ leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran on
Wednesday, a day after an Israeli strike in Beirut killed Fuad Shukr, a top
military commander from the Lebanese armed group Hezbollah.
Haniyeh’s death was one in a series of killings of senior Hamas figures as the
Gaza war nears its 11th month.
