Pople react during a farewell for Palestinian Ahmed Khalil killed in an Israeli airstrike, at his home, in the Balata refugee camp, in Nablus in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, August 15, 2024.
| Photo Credit: Reuters

Gaza’s civil defence agency said an Israeli air strike in the early hours of Saturday(August 17, 2024) killed 15 people from a Palestinian family, including nine children and three women.

The strike hit the home of the Ajlah family in Al-Zawaida neighbourhood of central Gaza, said civil defence spokesman Mahmud Bassal. The Israeli military did not offer an immediate comment.

“The toll from the Israeli strike on the Ajlah family home and their warehouse in Al-Zawaida is 15 dead,” Mr. Bassal said.

Mr. Bassal gave a list of those killed, including nine children and three women.

A witness said the strike took place shortly after midnight.

“Three rockets hit the house directly,” Ahmed Abu al-Ghoul said as rescuers pulled bodies from the rubble of the flattened house.

“There were a lot of children and women inside… What have they done to deserve this?”

AFPTV footage of the aftermath, captured after dawn, showed rescuers searching for bodies under piles of collapsed concrete blocks.

More than 10 months of war between Israel and Hamas has left vast swathes of Gaza in ruins.

The war broke out after Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, which resulted in the deaths of 1,198 people, mostly civilians, according to a tally based on official Israeli figures.

Militants also seized 251 people during the attack, 111 of whom are still held captive in Gaza, including 39 the Israeli military says are dead.

Israel’s retaliatory military campaign has killed at least 40,005 people in Gaza, according to the health ministry of the Hamas-run territory, which does not provide details of civilian and militant deaths.

A Palestinian woman looks out of her window after an Israeli strike on the Gaza Strip in Rafah on Saturday, Oct. 21, 2023.
| Photo Credit:
AP

Hezbollah’s escalating attacks on Israel risk “dragging Lebanon into a war”, Israel’s military said Sunday, after renewed cross-border exchanges of fire that have raised fears of a wider conflict.

The Lebanese militant group Hezbollah is allied with Hamas, which touched off the latest violence with a bloody October 7 rampage in Israel that killed at least 1,400 people, mostly civilians, according to Israeli officials.

Israel has retaliated with relentless strikes on the Iran-backed Hamas in the Gaza Strip that have killed more than 4,300 Palestinians, also mainly civilians.

It has also exchanged fire with Hezbollah across its northern border, with Israel Defense Forces (IDF) spokesman Jonathan Conricus accusing the group of a dangerous escalation.

“Hezbollah… is dragging Lebanon into a war that it will gain nothing from, but stands to lose a lot,” Conricus said.

“Hezbollah is playing a very, very dangerous game. They’re escalating the situation. We see more and more attacks every day,” he said.

– AFP

U.S. State Secretary Antony Blinken on Saturday discussed Hamas’ attack on Israel with the foreign ministers of Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Turkey, the UK Foreign Secretary and Qatari Prime Minister.

“Spoke with Saudi Foreign Minister @FaisalbinFarhan to discuss today’s appalling attacks on Israel. I reiterated Israel’s right to self-defence and called for coordinated efforts to achieve an immediate halt to the violent attacks by Hamas terrorists and other militants,” Blinken wrote on ‘X’ on Saturday.

He also discussed the attack with Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry. “We appreciate Egypt’s ongoing efforts and reiterate the urgent need to halt the Hamas attacks,” Blinken wrote.

In his talks with the Turkish Foreign Minister, Blinken reiterated Israel’s right to defend itself, rescue any hostages, and protect its citizens.

– ANI