Israeli Strikes Kill at Least 12 Palestinians in Gaza, Including Family of Six

At least 12 Palestinians were killed in three separate Israeli strikes in the Gaza Strip on Tuesday, local medics said. Six members of one family died when an airstrike hit their apartment in the western al-Sabra neighbourhood of Gaza City. The victims were identified as Firas al-Masri, his wife Salsabeel, and their children Faryal, Salma, Amira and Naim.

The Israeli military stated its target was a Hamas operative and said it was still investigating the outcome of the attack on the al-Masri family. Video footage showed the apartment on fire after the strike. Four people were killed in an airstrike on a home in the al-Samar area of central Gaza City, and two more died in a drone strike on a vehicle in the al-Zahra area south of Gaza City.

The Israeli military has not commented on those two incidents. The UN human rights office condemned the recent intensification of Israeli attacks. Between 13 and 20 July, at least 57 Palestinians, including six children and eight women, were killed in strikes on residential buildings, a tent camp and other crowded areas, spokesman Thameen Al-Kheetan said.

Thirty-four of those killed were struck far from the Yellow Line marking territory controlled by Israeli forces. Gaza's Hamas-run health ministry reported that at least 1,168 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli attacks since a ceasefire took effect last October. Four Israeli soldiers have been killed in Palestinian attacks in Gaza over the same period.

The Israeli military has announced a series of attacks targeting members of Palestinian armed groups it said were involved in the Hamas-led attack on Israel on 7 October 2023, during which about 1,200 people were killed and 251 taken hostage. Israel's subsequent campaign in Gaza has killed more than 73,290 people, according to the territory's health ministry.