Palestinian death toll rises as Israel continues airstrikes on Gaza

Israeli air strikes have collapsed homes in Palestinian Gaza, sparking escalating fears that at least 24 Palestinians, including six children, have been killed and 215 injured in the besieged enclave so far. .

The Palestinian Ministry of Health has blamed an “Israeli aggression” for Saturday’s latest death, including an “elderly woman,” and hundreds of injured Palestinians.

But an Israeli government statement denied responsibility for the strike at the Jabalia refugee camp that killed the children, and claimed that rockets fired by Palestinian fighter jets toward Israel were inadequate. could not be verified to

Islamic Jihad fighters fired rockets as far as Tel Aviv, Israel’s commercial hub, while the Israeli strike continued, with the military attacking hidden arsenals in residential areas and destroying many homes.

There were no reports of serious casualties, according to the Israeli ambulance service.

The Islamic Jihad Group said on Friday that senior leader Taisir al-Jabari was among those killed in Israel’s attack on Gaza. The group has since launched rockets in retaliation.

EGYPT said it was holding intensive consultations to calm the situation.

However, a spokesperson for the Israeli military said its forces were “preparing for an operation that will last a week,” and the military “is not currently negotiating a ceasefire,” he told AFP news agency.

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Condemnation floods after Israel launches deadly attack on besieged Gaza

strict lockdown

Some 2.3 million Palestinians are crammed into a small area of ​​the Gaza coast, and Israel has severely restricted the movement of people and goods in and out of the enclave, imposing land, sea and naval blockades.

Israel halted planned fuel shipments to Gaza shortly before Friday’s unilateral attack, neutralized the Palestinian region’s only power plant, cut power to about eight hours a day, and cut several hospitals. It drew warnings from health officials that it would be severely affected within days.

The border between Israel and Gaza has been largely quiet since May 2021, when the 11-day war between Israel and Palestine killed at least 250 people in Gaza and 13 in Israel.

Israeli airstrikes are focused on densely populated residential areas in Gaza.

read more: Gaza’s only power plant shuts down as Israeli airstrikes continue

‘Disastrous results’

UN Special Envoy Tor Wensland has warned against the “devastating consequences” of the ongoing Israeli attack on Palestinians in Gaza.

Meanwhile, the UN envoy described the escalation as “extremely dangerous” and called on “all sides to avoid further escalation”.

“The responsibility to avoid this lies with the parties. [escalation] It happens,” he added.

Egypt’s al-Azhar, the seat of the highest scholarship in the Sunni Muslim world, condemned the Israeli airstrikes on Gaza and urged Arabs and Muslims to “represent the Palestinians and their just cause and their just struggle.” We call on you to unite to help.”

Palestinian authorities in the occupied West Bank condemned the Israeli attack. “Israel has the right to defend itself,” US Ambassador to Israel Tom Nides tweeted.

The US State Department reiterated its position on Saturday, urging all sides to avoid further escalation while fully supporting Israel’s right to self-defense.

In Jordan, there were protests in support of the besieged Palestinians.

Turkiye, Pakistan, Qatar and Iran were among the countries condemning the ongoing violence caused by Israel’s invasion of Gaza.

Source: TRTWorld and institutions