Gaza’s Civil Defense announced Saturday that 23 people were killed in Israeli army strikes or gunfire across the war-ravaged Palestinian territory, after more than 20 months of conflict. “At least 23 people were killed and dozens injured and taken to hospitals following Israeli gunfire and airstrikes,” said Civil Defense spokesperson Mahmoud Bassal in a statement to AFP.
Due to severe restrictions on media access in Gaza and the difficulty of verifying information on the ground, AFP was not able to independently confirm the reported figures.
According to Bassal, six airstrikes, allegedly carried out by drones or fighter jets, killed 21 people, including three children in a strike on a home in Jabalia, in northern Gaza. Two other individuals were killed by Israeli fire while waiting in line for food distribution in the so-called Netzarim corridor in central Gaza, he added.
Asked by AFP about Bassal’s statements, the Israeli army had not responded by mid-afternoon.
Following the cease-fire reached with Iran on Tuesday, Israeli army Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir said that the military was “refocusing on Gaza to bring the hostages home and dismantle the Hamas regime.”
The war began with Hamas’s unprecedented attack on southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023.
That attack resulted in the deaths of 1,219 people in Israel, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official sources. 49 people kidnapped that day remain in captivity in Gaza, 27 of whom have been declared dead by the Israeli army.
On the Palestinian side, more than 56,412 people — mostly civilians — have been killed in Israel’s military campaign in Gaza, according to the Gaza Health Ministry. These figures are considered reliable by the United Nations.
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