At least 21 people have been killed in multiple Israeli airstrikes across Gaza, the territory’s civil defence agency reported on Saturday, as both Israel and Hamas accused each other of violating a fragile ceasefire.
According to the civil defence agency, five separate strikes hit residential areas and vehicles in central and western Gaza. In Nuseirat, a central Gaza town, seven people were killed and more than 16 others wounded after a house was targeted. Four others died in a residential apartment in the Al-Nasr district, while five were killed when a vehicle was hit in the Al-Rimal neighborhood. Dozens more sustained injuries in the strikes, officials said.
Mahmud Bassal, a spokesperson for Gaza’s civil defence, described the attacks as “a clear violation of the ceasefire” and called on mediators to intervene urgently to stop further violence.
The Israeli military stated the strikes were a response to a security incident, claiming an armed individual had crossed a de facto boundary and attacked Israeli forces. Israel said its targets were “terror targets” and asserted that it had fully adhered to the truce. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office added that five senior Hamas operatives were eliminated in the operation.
The latest attacks mark one of the deadliest days since the U.S.-brokered truce began in October. Gaza’s health ministry reports that over 300 Palestinians have been killed since the ceasefire took effect, highlighting the fragility of the agreement as tensions between the sides remain high.
