Israeli airstrikes kill at least 12 Palestinians in Gaza as both sides accuse each other of ceasefire violations
Palestinian civil defence reported at least 12 deaths across Gaza on Sunday. Israel said it responded to Hamas breaches of the October truce.
5 hrs ago
Israeli airstrikes killed at least 12 Palestinians across the Gaza Strip on Sunday, according to Palestinian civil defence and health officials, marking a significant escalation despite a ceasefire agreement that has been in place since October 10.
The Gaza civil defence agency said five people were killed and several others injured when an airstrike targeted a tent sheltering displaced people in the northern city of Jabaliya. In a separate early morning strike in the southern city of Khan Younis, five more people were killed and several injured, according to the same agency, which operates as a rescue force under Hamas authorities.
Additional casualties were reported elsewhere. One person was killed after Israeli shelling in Gaza City, while one person was killed by Israeli gunfire in Beit Lahia in the northern part of the enclave. The Hospital Al-Shifa in Gaza City and the Hospital Nasser in Khan Younis confirmed receiving bodies from the strikes.
The Israeli military said it carried out the airstrikes in response to what it described as ceasefire violations by Hamas. The IDF stated that militants had emerged from a tunnel into the area of the strip controlled by Israeli military forces, prompting the response. Israel did not provide further details about the specific nature of the alleged violations or the extent of any militant casualties.
The Palestinian Red Crescent offered a higher casualty count for the Jabaliya strike, saying at least six people were killed in that incident, while confirming five deaths in the Khan Younis attack.
Hazem Qassem, a Hamas spokesperson in Gaza, accused Israel of committing a new "massacre" against displaced Palestinians and called the strikes a serious breach of the ceasefire. The timing of the attacks came days before the first meeting of Donald Trump's Board of Peace.
The ceasefire, which was brokered by the United States and entered its second phase last month, has remained fragile. Both Israel and Hamas have repeatedly accused each other of near-daily violations since the agreement took effect. According to the Hamas-run Gaza health ministry, at least 600 people have been killed since the ceasefire went into effect.
The strikes on Gaza were accompanied by Israeli military attacks on southern Lebanon, where the IDF targeted what it said were warehouses used by the Hezbollah armed group.