A Palestinian stands at the site of a deadly Israeli strike that pummelled houses in a Gaza City neighbourhood. - PHOTO: REUTERS
CAIRO (Reuters/AFP): At least 42 people were killed in Israeli attacks in districts in Gaza City on June 22, the director of the Hamas-run government media office said.
One Israeli strike on houses in Al-Shati, one of the Gaza Strip’s eight historic refugee camps, killed 24 people, Mr Ismail Al-Thawabta told Reuters.
Another 18 Palestinians were killed in a strike on houses in the Al-Tuffah neighbourhood.
The Israeli military released a brief statement saying: “A short while ago, IDF fighter jets struck two Hamas military infrastructure sites in the area of Gaza City.”
It said more details would be released soon.
Hamas did not comment on the Israeli claim to have hit its military infrastructure. It said in a statement the attacks targeted the civilian population and vowed in a statement “the occupation and its Nazi leaders will pay the price for their violations against our people”.
Footage obtained by Reuters showed dozens of Palestinians rushing out to search for victims amid the destroyed houses. The footage showed wrecked homes, blasted walls, and debris and dust filling the street at the Al-Shati refugee camp.
Israel’s ground and air campaign in Gaza was triggered when Hamas-led militants stormed into southern Israel on Oct 7, killing around 1,200 people and seizing more than 250 hostages, according to Israeli tallies.
The offensive has left Gaza in ruins, killed more than 37,400 people, of whom 101 were killed in the past 24 hours, according to the Palestinian health authorities, and left nearly the entire population homeless and destitute.
The Israeli army on June 22 continued to pound Gaza, after the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) said 22 people were killed in shelling that damaged its office in the besieged Palestinian territory.
Exchanges of fire across the Lebanese border between Israel and the powerful Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah have also escalated in recent weeks, raising fears of an even wider war.
Catastrophe ‘beyond imagination’
United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said on June 21 that the cross-border hostilities must not turn Lebanon into “another Gaza”, warning of the risk of triggering a catastrophe “beyond imagination”.
His warning came as Israel stepped up its strikes in Gaza, where one hospital in Gaza City reported at least 30 dead on June 21.
Fighting continued on the morning of June 22, with witnesses reporting gun battles between militants and Israeli forces in Gaza City.
And in the city’s Zeitun neighbourhood, Israeli helicopters fired at militants, witnesses said.
The Israeli military, meanwhile, said its troops continued to carry out operations in central Gaza, “eliminating several armed terrorists and dismantling terrorist infrastructure in the area”.
“Fighter jets and additional aircraft struck numerous terror targets in the Gaza Strip, including armed terrorists, weapons storage facilities, and additional terrorist infrastructure,” it added.
In southern Gaza, the ICRC on June 21 said 22 dead and 45 wounded people were taken to a Red Cross field hospital after shelling with “heavy-calibre projectiles” near its Gaza office.
“Firing so dangerously close to humanitarian structures puts the lives of civilians and humanitarians at risk,” the ICRC said on X.
The Health Ministry in the Hamas-run territory blamed the shelling on Israel, saying there were 25 killed and 50 wounded in the southern coastal Al-Mawasi area, where thousands of displaced people have been sheltering in tents.
An Israeli military spokesman did not acknowledge any role in the incident but said it was “under review”.
In the north of the Strip, the director of Gaza City’s Al-Ahli hospital was quoted by the Health Ministry as reporting 30 dead in strikes.
“It has been a difficult and brutal day in Gaza City. So far, around 30 martyrs have arrived at the Al-Ahli Arab Hospital,” Dr Fadel Naeem was quoted as saying. - REUTERS, AFP
