Gaza’s civil defense agency said Israeli forces killed at least 51 people, including 24 at a seafront rest area, as fresh calls grow for a ceasefire in the war-ravaged Palestinian territory.
The swift resolution of Israel’s 12-day war with Iran has revived hopes for a halt to the fighting in Gaza, where more than 20 months of combat have created dire humanitarian conditions for the population of more than 2 million.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is to visit the White House on Monday next week, a US official said on condition of anonymity.
Photo: AP
US President Donald Trump recently urged Israel to “make the deal in Gaza,” and Israeli Minister for Strategic Affairs Ron Dermer is visiting Washington this week for talks with US officials.
However, on the ground, Israel has continued to pursue its offensive across the Palestinian territory.
Gaza’s civil defense agency said 51 people had been killed by Israeli forces on Monday, including 24 in a strike on a rest area on Gaza City’s seafront.
“I saw body parts flying everywhere, and bodies cut and burned... It was a scene that made your skin crawl,” 26-year-old eyewitness Ahmed al-Nayrab said, recalling a “huge explosion that shook the area.”
“The place is always crowded with people, because the rest area offers drinks, family seating and Internet access,” he said.
Another eyewitness, 35-year-old Bilal Awkal, said that “blood covered the ground, and screams filled the air.”
“Women and children were everywhere, like a scene from a movie about the end of the world,” Awkal said.
The Israeli army said it was “looking into” the reports.
The Hamas government media office reported that photojournalist Ismail Abu Hatab was among those killed in the strike.
Israeli restrictions on media in Gaza and difficulties in accessing some areas mean Agence France-Presse (AFP) is unable to independently verify the tolls, and details provided by rescuers and authorities in the territory.
Civil defense spokesman Mahmud Bassal said that 27 others were killed by Israeli strikes or fire across Gaza, including 11 near aid points in the center and south.
Eyewitnesses and local authorities have reported repeated killings of Palestinians near distribution centers over the past few weeks, after Israel began allowing in a trickle of aid at the end of May.
Samir Abu Jarbou, 28, said that he had gone with relatives to pick up food in an area of central Gaza around midnight.
“Suddenly the [Israeli] army opened fire, and drones started shooting. We ran away and got nothing,” he said.
In the southern city of Khan Yunis, the dead and wounded were rushed to a hospital in an open-top trailer after aid seekers said they were fired on by Israeli forces in Rafah.
“The targeting was deliberate, aimed at people as they were leaving,” eyewitness Aboud al-Adwi said.
“There was no one among us who was wanted or posed any threat. We were all civilians, simply trying to get food for our children,” he added.
The Israeli military did not immediately provide comment about the civil defense reports.
Israel launched its campaign in response to Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attack, which resulted in the deaths of 1,219 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on Israeli official figures.
Of the 251 hostages seized during the assault, 49 are still held in Gaza, including 27 the Israeli military says are dead. Israel’s retaliatory campaign has killed at least 56,531 people in Gaza, also mostly civilians, the Hamas-run territory’s health ministry said. The UN considers these figures to be reliable.
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