6 children among 14 killed in Israeli bombing of Rafah

By Hosni Nadim

GAZA CITY, Palestine (AA) – At least 14 Palestinians, including six children, were killed on Sunday in an Israeli bombing that targeted a house in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip.

“In a devastating airstrike carried out by Israeli warplanes last night, a three-story house in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip was targeted, resulting in the killing of dozens of civilians, including six children. Many are still trapped under the rubble,” the official Palestinian news agency Wafa reported.

The agency added that 14 Palestinians were killed in the airstrike which targeted “the Abu Anza family house in the Al-Salam neighborhood east of Rafah, with dozens more wounded and many still missing.”

“The attack also caused extensive damage to the surrounding area,” it added.

More than 1.4 million Palestinians displaced by Israel's offensive on Gaza are holed up in Rafah, seeking refuge from hostilities.

Israel's reported plans for an offensive on the city have sounded international alarm bells, with many countries urging restraint or cancelation of the operation.

In Khan Younis, in the southern Gaza Strip, Israeli forces “executed intense bombings from the air and artillery north of the city,” the agency also reported.

“This assault coincided with the advancement of Israeli military vehicles towards Hamad City neighborhood, located north of the province, targeting homes with shells and gunfire,” it added.

In the northern and central Gaza Strip, an airstrike targeted a home in the center of Jabalia refugee camp, leading to several civilians killed and injured.

“A group of civilians in the Al-Nuseirat camp in the central Gaza Strip were targeted, resulting in multiple injuries,” the agency added.

At least 30,320 people have been killed and 71,533 wounded in Israeli attacks on Gaza since Oct. 7, according to the enclave’s Health Ministry. About 1,200 people were killed in the initial attacks by Palestinian group Hamas.

Israel is accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice. An interim ruling in January ordered Tel Aviv to stop genocidal acts and take measures to guarantee that humanitarian assistance is provided to civilians in Gaza.

Hostilities have continued unabated, however, and aid deliveries remain woefully insufficient to address the humanitarian catastrophe.

* Writing by Ikram Kouachi