Israel-Gaza conflict: more than 50 people killed or missing in Israeli strikes on central Gaza, local officials say

CNN
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Fifty-two people were killed or missing in Israeli strikes near Gaza City on Saturday, according to the Hamas-controlled Government Media Office (GMO).

The GMO said 38 bodies arrived at Al Ahli Baptist Hospital and 14 people were still missing under the rubble of houses and buildings. Video from two of the targeted areas shows significant destruction and numerous casualties after large explosions.

The Directorate of Civil Defense said a number of people were still under the rubble after Israeli warplanes targeted a house near the Batsh cemetery in the Al Tuffah neighborhood east of the Gaza City.

Another strike was reported on a residential block in Al Shati, another neighborhood close to Gaza City.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF), in a brief statement on Saturday, said IDF warplanes struck “Hamas military infrastructure” sites in the Gaza City area.

The Israeli military did not specify where the strikes took place. CNN is seeking more details.

A medical responder in the area told CNN that the airstrike on the Al Shati camp felt like an “earthquake.”

“The Al Shati camp, near the Al Sousi Mosque, was targeted, which was like an earthquake affecting an entire residential area.

“There are entire families under the destroyed houses.”

Abu Mahmoud Al-Karir, a local resident, said: “Some time ago, people were behaving normally, some were buying goods, others were at home.

“Then the occupation planes arrived and bombed this residential area. As you can see, an entire block has been erased. The large buildings have been razed and are now buried underground.

It comes after the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) said at least 22 people were killed on Friday in a strike that hit civilian refugees in southern Gaza.

The strike hit the tents of displaced people in the Palestinian town of Mawasi, parts of which have been identified by the Israeli army as a humanitarian zone.

The ICRC said on Friday that its office adjacent to the Mawasi humanitarian zone had been damaged by nearby shelling. He did not attribute responsibility for the bombing, but said “firing so dangerously close to humanitarian structures endangers the lives of civilians and humanitarians.”

“Large caliber projectiles” landed a few meters from the establishment and the nearby Red Cross field hospital received 22 bodies and 45 wounded.

The Israeli military said Saturday it was investigating the incident. “Following an initial investigation, no direct attack was carried out by the IDF against a Red Cross establishment. The incident will be promptly investigated and its findings will be presented to our international partners.

Israel has stepped up its operations in the neighboring Rafah region, where it launched an offensive last month as part of its campaign to dismantle Hamas in Gaza. A Gaza official said the Israeli army was moving deeper into Rafah and closer to the coast.

The total death toll in the Gaza Strip since October 7 now stands at 37,551, with 85,911 injured, according to the Gaza Health Ministry.

Israel launched its offensive in Gaza following the Hamas attacks on October 7, which left around 1,200 people dead.

This is a developing story and will be updated. Khader Al-Za'anoun of Wafa, the official Palestinian news agency, contributed to this story.