Death Toll Rises: 38,919 Palestinians Killed in Gaza Conflict
The Israeli forces bombarded several areas of the Gaza Strip on Saturday, killing at least 39 Palestinians, according to health officials, while tanks advanced further into western and northern Rafah, reports arabnews.pk.
Among those killed on Saturday were local journalist Mohammad Abu Jasser, his wife, and their two children in an Israeli attack on their house in the northern Gaza Strip, said a doctor.
The press office of the Hamas Government in Gaza stated that Abu Jasser's death raised the number of Palestinian media personnel killed by Israeli fire from October 7 to 161.
Shortly before midnight, an Israeli airstrike on a camp housing displaced Palestinian families killed at least 10 people, according to doctors and Hamas media.
In the Al-Nuseirat camp in central Gaza Strip, an Israeli airstrike on a house on Saturday killed three people and injured eight others, according to doctors.
Earlier in the day, an Israeli rocket hit a multi-story building in the camp, injuring several people, including two local journalists, said rescue workers. In Rafah, where Israel declared it aims to dismantle the last battalions of Hamas's armed wing, residents said tanks advanced further into the northern areas of the city and took control of a hill in the west, amid violent exchanges of fire with Hamas fighters.
The army stated that the troops continued operations in Rafah, eliminating many armed men in the last 24 hours in the Tel Al-Sultan area, on the western side of the city. In central Gaza, the army reported conducting raids on militant infrastructure.
Military officials also mentioned striking a structure used by Palestinian militants in Deir Al-Balah, in central Gaza, noting that snipers operated from a humanitarian area and accusing Gaza militants of exploiting structures and the civilian population for military purposes, a charge that Hamas and other groups deny as false to justify such attacks.
A ceasefire attempt led by Qatar and Egypt, supported by the United States, has failed so far due to disputes between combatants, who blame each other for the deadlock.
Israel has vowed to eradicate Hamas after its fighters killed 1,200 people and took over 250 hostages in the October 7 attack, according to Israeli statistics. Health authorities in Gaza state that at least 38,919 Palestinians have been killed in Israel's retaliatory offensive since then.
On Tuesday, Israel claimed to have eliminated half of the leadership of Hamas's military wing and killed or captured approximately 14,000 fighters since the war began. Israel reports that 326 of its soldiers have been killed in Gaza.
Hamas does not publish casualty figures and has accused Israel of exaggerating its reports to create the impression of a "false victory."
Translation by Iurie Tataru
