Health Ministry in Gaza: Israeli camp strike claims dozens of lives

• AP and AFP, JERUSALEM and GAZA STRIP, Palestinian Territories

At least 71 people were killed yesterday in an Israeli attack on a refugee camp in the south of the Palestinian territory, the Health Ministry in Hamas-controlled Gaza said.

It is the latest incident with a large number of casualties in the al-Mawasi region, where many Palestinians had fled, and comes as international mediators continue their efforts to end the war between Israel and Hamas militants.

Israel said the massive attack was directed against the Hamas military commander, but it was initially unclear whether Mohammed Deif was among the dead.

Israeli officials confirmed that he and a second Hamas commander, Rafa Salama, were the targets. Hamas immediately denied the claim.

Many believe Deif was primarily responsible for the attack on October 7 last year that killed around 1,200 people in southern Israel and sparked the war between Israel and Hamas. He has been at the top of Israel’s wanted list for years and is believed to have escaped several Israeli assassination attempts in the past.

His possible killing threatens to derail ceasefire talks and would be seen as a major victory for Israel in the nine-month war.

“These false claims are only intended to cover up the extent of the horrific massacre,” Hamas said in a statement to Israel.

A statement by Gaza’s Health Ministry said the “brutal massacre by the occupation” in al-Mawasi camp had left more than “71 martyrs” and 289 people injured.

The Israeli military said it had “hidden more terrorists among the civilian population” based on “accurate intelligence information.”

Footage of the aftermath showed charred tents, burned-out cars and household items scattered across the blackened earth as rescue workers and Palestinians displaced by the nine-month war searched for survivors.

The victims were transported on the hoods and tailgates of cars, as well as on donkey carts and carpets.

According to witnesses, the attack landed in al-Muwasi, the Israeli-designated security zone that stretches from northern Rafah to Khan Younis.

Hundreds of thousands of displaced Palestinians have fled to the coastal strip in search of safety and have mostly found shelter in makeshift tents.

“This was a safe zone where people from the north were staying,” said one displaced person who did not give his name. “All the children were martyred here. We picked up their remains with our hands.”

He said seven or eight rockets hit the camp and that first responders were also targeted.

On Friday, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres appealed to donor governments to resume funding for the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA).

“Just when we thought things could not get any worse in Gaza, civilians are being pushed into ever deeper circles of hell in a terrifying way,” he said.

UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini later said the agency had sufficient resources to maintain operations until September.