Israeli strikes across the Gaza Strip overnight and into Sunday killed at the least 16 people, Palestinian medical officials said.
A strike on a faculty housing displaced people in Gaza City killed at the least six people, including 4 children, in line with the Civil Defense, first responders affiliated with the Hamas-run government. The Israeli military said it carried out a precise strike on Hamas militants sheltering there.
A strike on a house within the central city of Deir al-Balah late Saturday killed at the least eight people, in line with the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital, which received the bodies. An extra two people were killed in a strike within the southern city of Khan Younis on Sunday, just after midnight, in line with the nearby Nasser Hospital.
There was no immediate comment from the military on those strikes.
Israel has continued to perform each day strikes in Gaza greater than 14 months into the war with Hamas. It says it only targets militants, whom it accuses of hiding amongst civilians, however the bombings incessantly kill women and youngsters.
The war began on Oct. 7, 2023, when Hamas-led militants stormed into southern Israel in a surprise attack, killing some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducting around 250. Around 100 hostages are still in Gaza, at the least a 3rd of whom are believed to be dead.
Israel’s subsequent bombardment and ground invasion have killed over 45,000 people in Gaza, greater than half of them women and youngsters, in line with the Gaza Health Ministry, which doesn’t distinguish between fighters and civilians in its count.
The offensive has caused widespread destruction and displaced some 90% of Gaza’s 2.3 million people, often multiple times. Hundreds of 1000’s are packed into squalid tent camps along the coast because the cold, wet winter sets in.
Israel has been carrying out a serious operation in northern Gaza since early October, battling Hamas in probably the most isolated and heavily damaged a part of the territory. Tens of 1000’s have fled because the military has ordered an entire evacuation and allowed almost no humanitarian aid to enter.
The Israeli military body overseeing civilian affairs in Gaza, referred to as COGAT, said it had facilitated the evacuation of over 100 patients, caregivers and others from the Kamal Adwan Hospital and the Awda Hospital within the far north, which have struggled to operate. COGAT said it had also facilitated the delivery of 5,000 liters of fuel and food packages to the hospitals.
Israeli authorities also allowed Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, the leader of the Catholic Church within the Holy Land, to enter Gaza and rejoice a pre-Christmas Mass with members of the territory’s small Christian community. The Latin Patriarchate confirmed the visit in a temporary statement.
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