At least 93 people were killed or missing after an Israeli airstrike in the northern Gaza town of Beit Lahia, the Hamas-run health ministry said, in an attack the United States called “heinous”.
Rescuers say a five-story building was hit, and videos on social media show bodies covered with blankets on the ground.
The Israeli military said it was “aware of reports that civilians were injured today [Tuesday] in the area of Beit Lahia”. It added that the details of the incident are being investigated.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) have been operating in northern Gaza for the past two weeks, particularly in the areas of Jabalia, Beit Lahia and Beit Hanoun.
The director of the nearby Kamal Adwan hospital in Jabalia, Hussam Abu Safia, told AFP that the children are being treated at a hospital that is struggling to treat patients due to a lack of staff and medicines.
“There is nothing left at Kamal Adwan Hospital except first aid kits after the army arrested our medical team and staff,” Abu Safia said.
The IDF raided this hospital last week, saying it was being used by Hamas fighters.
State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said the US is “deeply concerned about the loss of life in this incident. This is a shocking incident that has had a shocking effect”.
He cited “reports of twelve children killed” in the attack.
“The tragic human cost” of the latest strike “is another reminder of why we need to see an end to this war”, Miller said.
Israel says its operations in northern Gaza are aimed at preventing Hamas from consolidating and accuses them of engaging with civilians, which Hamas denies.
In a statement on Tuesday, it said it had killed 40 “terrorists” in Jabalia, while in central Gaza it said it had “eliminated many terrorists” in the past 24 hours, including some who “tried to plant explosives near soldiers”.
The northern Gaza Strip is facing a humanitarian crisis, as hundreds of thousands of people live in dire conditions.
UN human rights chief Volker Türk said on Friday that “the Israeli army is subjecting the entire community to bombings, sieges and the risk of starvation”.
He also said it was unacceptable that Palestinian armed groups were reportedly operating among civilians, including in shelters for displaced people, and putting them at risk.
On Monday, the Israeli parliament voted on a law to ban the UN refugee agency for Palestine, UNRWA, from working in the country, prompting warnings that aid delivery to Gaza could have a major impact..
Israel launched a campaign to destroy Hamas following the group's unprecedented attack in southern Israel on October 7, 2023, in which approximately 1,200 people were killed and 251 others were captured.
More than 42,924 people have been killed in Gaza, according to the health ministry, which does not distinguish between civilians and fighters in its figures.
Israel does not allow international journalists from media organizations, including the BBC, independent access to Gaza, making it difficult to verify the facts on the ground.
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