At least 8 Palestinians killed, scores injured in Israeli airstrikes on refugee camps in Gaza

By Hosni Nadim

GAZA CITY, Palestine (AA) – At least eight Palestinians were killed and scores more injured in intensive Israeli airstrikes on refugee camps in the Gaza Strip overnight and Friday morning, amid reports of battles between Palestinian resistance groups and Israeli forces in Rafah, where the military bulldozed several houses after forcibly evicting residents.

An Israeli airstrike on Al-Ja'ouni school, which houses displaced people in the Nusseirat refugee camp in central Gaza, killed at least four Palestinians and injured several others, medical sources told Anadolu.

In Gaza City, three Palestinians were killed in an Israeli airstrike on a house belonging to the Al-Telbani family in the Al-Shati refugee camp in the city’s west, according to medical sources at Al-Ahli Baptist Hospital.

In Rafah, a young man was killed and two others were injured in an Israeli airstrike near Al-Awda Square in the city center. The aircraft also bombed an uninhabited house belonging to the Hamad family west of the city.

According to an Anadolu correspondent citing eyewitnesses and local sources, Israeli vehicles were stationed in several areas east of Rafah, including the eastern cemetery, George Street, the Al-Salam neighborhood, Al-Belbisi Street, Al-Shawi, the Project area, the Al-Tanur neighborhood, Al-Shouka town, and inside and around the airport, Rafah, and Kerem Shalom crossing.

He added that military vehicles were conducting bulldozing and excavation operations, as well as demolishing houses in the eastern Rafah areas where they were deployed.

According to eyewitnesses, fierce battles between Palestinian resistance fighters and Israeli forces stationed east of Rafah have been ongoing since Friday morning.

They noticed columns of black smoke rising in the sky above the city, as well as the intermittent sounds of clashes and heavy artillery shelling.

The Al-Qassam Brigades, Hamas' armed wing, said its fighters have used mortar shells to target Israeli forces stationed inside the Rafah crossing.

In northern Gaza, Israeli forces continue to storm the Jabalia refugee camp for the sixth consecutive day, launching a series of airstrikes targeting all areas of the camp, in addition to heavy gunfire from invading vehicles towards Palestinian homes.

Artillery shelling targeted areas west of Jabalia camp and the vicinity of Kamal Adwan Hospital in Beit Lahia, an Anadolu correspondent reported.

According to eyewitnesses, the Israeli military besieged Beit Hanoun on Friday, preventing several displaced families from leaving.

They also reported intense battles between resistance groups and Israeli forces in northern areas of Gaza.

The Al-Quds Brigades, the military wing of the Islamic Jihad Movement, said its fighters have bombed an enemy vehicle and an Israeli foot patrol on Jabal Al-Kashef, east of Jabalia, with 60mm mortar rounds.

Israel continued its brutal offensive on the Gaza Strip despite a UN Security Council resolution demanding an immediate cease-fire in the enclave.

More than 35,300 Palestinians have since been killed, the vast majority of whom have been women and children, and over 79,200 others injured since last October following a Hamas attack.

More than seven months into the Israeli war, vast swathes of Gaza lay in ruins amid a crippling blockade of food, clean water and medicine.

Israel is accused of “genocide” at the International Court of Justice, which has ordered Tel Aviv to ensure its forces do not commit acts of genocide and take measures to guarantee that humanitarian assistance is provided to civilians in Gaza.

*Writing by Rania Abu Shamala​​​​​​​