Israeli Attack in Gaza
Israel-Gaza war
- Gaza ceasefire Key events from the first six weeks of the truce
Ismail Thawabteh, the director-general of the Hamas-controlled government media office in Gaza, said the nine Palestinians killed in the strike were working for a charity. The identities and statuses of those killed could not be independently verified.
The Israeli military said earlier on Saturday that it had struck three militants in central Gaza who were attempting to install explosive devices on the ground near Israeli soldiers. Officials in the Gaza health ministry did not respond to requests for comment.
The steady drumbeat of Israeli strikes is a reminder that while Israel and Hamas have reached an agreement that paused most fighting in Gaza, a comprehensive truce is still nowhere in sight. In Lebanon, Israel is conducting a similar aerial campaign against the Lebanese armed group Hezbollah — a Hamas ally — during the U.S.-brokered cease-fires there, saying Israeli forces are attacking sites and operatives that have breached the agreement.
The war in Gaza began after Hamas’s deadly Oct. 7, 2023 attack on southern Israel, which killed about 1,200 people, mostly civilians, according to Israel’s government. About 250 others were taken back to Gaza as hostages.
Israel’s subsequent military campaign against Hamas has killed more than 48,000 people, including thousands of children, according to the Gaza health ministry. The figures do not distinguish between civilians and combatants and the Israeli military claims to have “eliminated” nearly 20,000 Hamas operatives.
