Humanitarian pause reveals destruction of ‘Rashad Al-Shawwa’ cultural center in Gaza by Israel

By Muhamed Majid

GAZA CITY, Palestine (AA) - The temporary humanitarian pause in Gaza has brought to light that the Israeli army had destroyed the "Rashad Al-Shawwa" Cultural Center in the Al-Rimal neighborhood of the Gaza City in the northern part of the enclave.

The center was used to shelter thousands of displaced Palestinians during the war.

But when it was demolished, displaced residents had already evacuated toward the southern part of the Strip, as reported by an Anadolu correspondent.

As the humanitarian pause in the Gaza Strip took effect early Friday, the Israeli army continued raids and arrests in cities and towns across the occupied West Bank.

Israel and Hamas swapped 24 Israelis and foreigners for 39 Palestinians from Israeli jails on Friday, on the first day of a four-day humanitarian pause.

Under the agreement, the hostages will be released in batches during the course of four days.

Israel launched a massive military campaign against the Gaza Strip following a cross-border attack by Hamas last month.

It has since killed at least 14,854 Palestinians, including 6,150 children and over 4,000 women, according to health authorities in the enclave.

The official Israeli death toll stands at 1,200.

*Writing by Ziad Aslan