Khan Younis, Gaza Strip – At least two Palestinians, including a young girl, were killed and four others, including children, injured in an Israeli airstrike targeting a displacement camp in the Al-Mawasi area of Khan Younis, southern Gaza Strip, earlier today. Naser Medical Complex confirmed the casualties.
The Israeli military stated that it conducted a strike in an area where it claimed Hamas operatives were active. According to the military, the target was an armed individual allegedly planning attacks against Israeli forces in the southern Gaza Strip. The military further asserted that the individual “posed an immediate threat to Israeli forces and was therefore targeted with a precision strike,” adding that “measures were taken to minimize harm to civilians.”
Hamas has condemned the strike, stating that Israel is escalating violations of the ceasefire agreement by intensifying the killing of innocent civilians and pushing the boundary line in Khan Younis further south, leading to further displacement.
The Gaza Health Ministry has reported that the number of Palestinian fatalities has risen to 422 since the ceasefire agreement came into effect last October. During the same period, three Israeli soldiers have been killed.
Airstrikes by the Israeli military have been recurring throughout the Gaza Strip since the implementation of the ceasefire agreement. Israel maintains that its strikes target militant infrastructure or prevent attacks, which Hamas views as a violation of the agreement.
Under the first phase of the ceasefire agreement, Israel retained control of 53% of the Gaza Strip. In exchange for the release of a group of Palestinian prisoners held by Israel, resistance factions were to hand over remaining Israeli captives – both living and deceased – in the Gaza Strip, including the remains of an Israeli police officer whose body has not yet been recovered.
Since October 7, 2023, the Israeli military campaign in the Gaza Strip has resulted in the deaths of over 71,000 Palestinians, the majority of whom were civilians. The Israeli forces have also destroyed 90% of the infrastructure and reduced large areas of the Strip to rubble.
