Israeli attacks kill five in Gaza, including two children, medics say
An Israeli strike on Monday killed a four-year-old boy, while a 10-year-old girl was hit by a bullet inside her tent, according to medics and relatives.
Five Palestinians, including two children, died in the Gaza Strip on Monday due to Israeli attacks involving air strikes and gunfire, according to health officials.
Among the deceased was 10-year-old Amal Abu Khater, who, according to her family and medics, was fatally shot inside their tent in Khan Younis, a city in the southern part of the territory. Her grandmother, Samira Abu Labda, recounted to Reuters that Amal was "eating sweets" when she was hit by a bullet in her back in the central al-Sattar al-Gharbi area. Despite being rushed to the hospital, medics confirmed her death upon arrival.
Separately, a four-year-old boy, Hassan al-Qatrawi, was killed in an air strike in the Bureij refugee camp in central Gaza. The Hamas-run Civil Defence agency in Gaza reported that first responders recovered his body from under the debris of his family's home after a neighboring building was struck. His mother and sister survived and were pulled from the rubble. Images from the scene depicted individuals navigating a large crater and sifting through concrete and metal fragments.
The Israeli military stated it was unaware of the incident in Khan Younis. Regarding Bureij, they confirmed issuing an evacuation order before striking what they identified as a Hamas weapons storage facility. They further claimed that this facility was one of five Hamas weapons storage sites and a launch location targeted in central and northern Gaza on Monday, alleging these facilities were "established inside mosques and alongside humanitarian infrastructure" in violation of international law.
One of the mosques reportedly struck was in Deir al-Balah, just south of Bureij. Aerial video footage released by the military appeared to show a significant explosion destroying two structures adjacent to the main prayer hall. However, Mohammed Abu Amra, a resident at the scene on Tuesday, refuted the claim of the mosque being used for weapons storage, holding up a damaged Quran and stating, "They are bombing the book of our Lord."
The UN's humanitarian office also reported that three UN warehouses in Deir al-Balah sustained damage in an air strike on Monday, with one significantly affected.
In Gaza City's Sheikh Radwan neighborhood, residents reported that a water desalination plant was bombed amidst existing water shortages. The Israeli military stated it targeted Hamas weapons storage facilities near the plant.
Hamas spokesman Hazem Qassem condemned the attacks, characterizing them as "a further attempt to deprive [Gaza's population] of all means of survival."
Beyond the children, at least three other individuals were killed in Israeli strikes across Gaza on Monday. These included brothers Mohammed and Ibrahim Abu Asad, whose tent in Deir al-Balah was bombed overnight, according to Palestinian media. The Israeli military identified Mohammed as an operative in Hamas's elite Nukhba force, claiming he participated in the October 7, 2023, attack on southern Israel, which resulted in approximately 1,200 deaths and 251 hostages taken.
Since a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas took effect last October, Israeli attacks in Gaza have killed at least 1,296 Palestinians, including 300 children, according to the territory's Hamas-run health ministry. In the same period, the Israeli military reports that four of its soldiers have died in Palestinian attacks in Gaza.
Israel's military campaign in Gaza, launched in response to the October 7 attack, has resulted in over 73,430 deaths, according to the territory's health ministry.