Israeli strike on Gaza funeral kills at least seven, wounds 22
An Israeli airstrike on a funeral in central Gaza killed at least seven people and injured 22, while other attacks in the enclave resulted in five additional deaths, according to local health officials.
An Israeli airstrike on a funeral in the central Gaza Strip killed at least seven people and wounded 22, local officials said. The strike hit mourners gathered for a Palestinian who had been killed in a previous Israeli attack on Friday. The Awda Hospital in the Nuseirat refugee camp confirmed the casualties.
The Israeli military said the operation targeted a "terrorist cell" belonging to the Palestinian Islamic Jihad group and acknowledged that civilians may have been harmed. Separate Israeli fire on Friday killed three more people, including two women, in northern Gaza, Gaza City and Khan Younis, according to health officials.
"The strike on the funeral is a heinous crime," said a spokesperson for Hamas.
Since a ceasefire agreement was reached in October, the Gaza Health Ministry reports that at least 1,123 people have been killed in the territory, with women and children comprising a large share of the deaths. The ministry’s figures are generally regarded as reliable by United Nations agencies and independent experts.
The conflict, which began after Hamas militants attacked southern Israel on Oct. 7, has seen Israel increase its operations in Gaza, conducting 40 attacks on militants in June, the highest monthly total since the ceasefire began, according to the Armed Conflict Location and Event Data project.