By Mohamed Majed
GAZA CITY, Palestine (AA) - Hamas accused the Israeli army of committing “massacres” in northern Gaza's Jabalia region, claiming the attacks were carried out as “retaliation against unarmed civilians under American cover.”
In a statement Saturday, Hamas condemned what it described as Israeli "Nazi occupation's massacres" that targeted a residential area in Jabalia late Friday, resulting in numerous fatalities and injuries. “These massacres,” Hamas said, “are a continuation of the ongoing criminal genocide against our people, shielded by American support.”
Hamas further said that these escalated strikes on civilians in Jabalia are an attempt to “punish the population for their resilience and rejection of displacement.”
“The ongoing Nazi terrorist crimes, now in their second year, demonstrate to the world that this rogue, fascist entity is bloodthirsty and seeks revenge through further genocide against our people in Gaza and the Lebanese population,” the group’s statement added.
Medical sources in Gaza reported that 24 Palestinians were killed and approximately 90 others wounded in Israeli airstrikes that targeted a civilian gathering and a residential block of four houses in Jabalia late Friday.
The situation in Jabalia has been especially tense since Oct. 6, with the Israeli army imposing a strict siege on the area, leading to an intense escalation of violence in northern Gaza and some of the fiercest clashes since May. Friday’s airstrikes marked Israel's third ground operation in Jabalia since the ongoing conflict escalated on Oct. 7, 2023, following earlier incursions in November and December of last year.
Israel has continued a brutal offensive on Gaza following a cross-border incursion by the Palestinian group Hamas on Oct. 7 last year, despite a UN Security Council resolution calling for an immediate cease-fire.
According to local health authorities, the conflict has claimed nearly 42,200 lives, primarily women and children, and has injured over 98,300 people in Gaza. The ongoing Israeli bombardment has also displaced nearly the entire population of Gaza, which continues to face severe shortages of food, clean water, and medical supplies due to the blockade.
Israel currently faces genocide allegations at the International Court of Justice over its actions in Gaza.
*Writing by Ikram Kouachi in Ankara