Israel launched two air strikes on a residential building and a civilian vehicle in Gaza City, reportedly killing 7 Palestinians, including three women and a child, on Friday. The attacks came as the Palestinian community across the globe observed the 78th anniversary of the Nakba, marking the massive displacement and ethnic cleansing of around 750,000 Palestinians in 1948, leading to the creation of current-day Israel.
Isreali Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defence Minister Israel Katz released a joint statement, claiming that the attacks targeted Izz al-Din al-Haddad, head of the armed wing of Hamas in Gaza. However, it did not mention whether Haddad was killed. Hamas has also not yet commented on the statement.
Medical sources told the Anadolu news agency that three Palestinians were killed in the strike on the vehicle while four died in the attack on the building in the Rimal neighbourhood in western Gaza City. The outlet also reported that 45 others were injured, several in critical condition.
Al Jazeera spoke to sources, who said that three women and a child were among those who were killed.
“According to witnesses on the ground the attack involved at least four missiles,” said Ibrahim Al Khalili, Al Jazeera’s correspondent in Gaza.
Al Khalil revealed that the place of the attack in western Gaza City was “overcrowded” due to refugees from the east taking shelter after a series of Israeli operations.
Gaza’s civil defence spokesman Mahmoud Basel said hundreds of people were living inside the building that was attacked.
He told Reuters, “The missile was fired without any pre-warning or notification. We are talking about a number of [dead]. We are talking about a big number of wounded, among them families.”
Although a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas was established under U.S President Donald Trump’s peace plan for Gaza in October last year, 850 Palestinians have been killed since then due to Israeli strikes, according to data from Gaza’s Health Ministry.
