An Israeli strike has killed at least 30 Palestinians and wounded 50 others who were sheltering in a post office in the central Gaza Strip, bringing the death toll on Thursday in the enclave to 66.
According to reports by Reuters, the strike hit a postal facility in Nuseirat camp where displaced families had sought refuge and damaged several nearby houses.
Nuseirat Refugee Camp is a Palestinian refugee camp located in the middle of the Gaza Strip, approximately 5 kilometres northeast of Deir al-Balah. The camp has a population of 31,747 registered refugees with the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA). It was established after the 1948 Palestinian expulsion during the 1948 Palestine War.
Currently, it is part of a dense urban area crowded with displaced people from throughout the enclave.
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According to a statement by Gaza medics and Hamas, two Israeli strikes in southern Gaza killed 13 Palestinians who were part of a force protecting humanitarian aid trucks.
The group added: Armed gangs have repeatedly hijacked aid trucks and Hamas has formed a task force to confront them. The Hamas-led forces have killed over two dozen members of the gangs in recent months.
Hamas, in another statement, accused Israel of killing at least 700 police tasked with securing aid trucks in Gaza since the war began on October 7, 2023.
However, the Israeli military has denied those in a statement, saying: “The two airstrikes aimed to ensure the safe delivery of humanitarian aid and accused Hamas members of planning to prevent the aid from reaching Gaza civilians who need it.
Meanwhile, Israeli bombings of a residential building in Gaza City’s al-Jalaa Street and a house west of Nuseirat killed 22 people, according to medics and the Palestinian news agency WAFA.
In the northern Gaza refugee camp of Jabalia, where the Israeli army has been stationed since October, health officials reported an orthopaedic doctor, Saeed Judeh, was shot dead by Israeli forces on his way to Al-Awda Hospital.
The death toll of the number of healthcare workers killed since the war began is 1,057, according to the Palestine Health Ministry.
The war began on October 77, 2023, when Hamas militants stormed into Israeli communities, killing over 1,200 people and taking around 250 hostages back to Gaza. Israel’s retaliatory offensive has led to the deaths of over 44,800 Palestinians, with women and children making up more than half of the casualties, according to local health officials.
The conflict has led to a devastating humanitarian crisis in Gaza, with over 90,830 people injured and infrastructures destroyed. The United Nations has warned of a potential famine in the north, where civilians struggle to access necessities like food, water, and healthcare.
Months of ceasefire negotiations led by Arab mediators Egypt and Qatar, with the backing of the United States, have failed. Despite intense diplomatic efforts, the warring sides have been unable to reach a deal, prolonging the conflict.
On Wednesday, December 11, the United Nations General Assembly overwhelmingly voted to demand an immediate, unconditional and permanent ceasefire and the immediate release of all hostages seized in Israel in October 2023 and held by Hamas in Gaza. It passed with a large majority of 153 in favour and 10 against, with 23 abstentions.
As the conflict continues, the people of Gaza face immense suffering with no end in sight. The international community must continue to pressure all parties involved to work towards a peaceful resolution and ensure the protection of innocent civilians.
