At least 22 Palestinians, mostly women and children, were killed Sunday as Israeli strikes continued to rain down on northern Gaza, Palestinian officials said.
The attacks come as the Israeli offensive in the hard-hit and isolated north entered a third week and aid groups described a humanitarian catastrophe.
The Gaza Health Ministry’s emergency service said that 11 women and two children were among the 22 killed in the strikes late Saturday on several homes and buildings in the northern Gaza town of Beit Lahia.
It said a further 15 people were wounded and that the death toll could rise. It listed the names of those killed, who mostly came from three families.
The Israeli military once again pushed its claims of targeting Hamas members there with precise strikes and claimed to be taking steps to avoid harming civilians.
It disputed what it said were "numbers published by the media," without elaborating or providing evidence for its own account.
Israel has been waging a massive air and ground offensive in northern Gaza since Oct. 6, saying that Hamas members have regrouped there.
Hundreds of people have been killed and tens of thousands of Palestinians have fled to Gaza City in the latest wave of displacement in the yearlong war.
Israel says its strikes on Gaza only target resistance group members and it blames Hamas for civilian casualties because they fight in densely populated areas. The military rarely comments on individual strikes, which often kill women and children.
Aid groups have warned of a catastrophic situation in northern Gaza, which was the first target of Israel's ground offensive and had already suffered the heaviest destruction of the war.
'Horrific circumstances'
Israel has severely limited the entry of basic humanitarian aid in recent weeks, and the three remaining hospitals in the north – one of which was raided over the weekend – say they have been overwhelmed by waves of wounded people.
The International Committee of the Red Cross on Saturday said that ongoing Israeli evacuation orders and restrictions on the entry of essential supplies to the north had left the civilian population in "horrific circumstances."
"Many civilians are currently unable to move, trapped by fighting, destruction or physical constraint and now lack access to even basic medical care," it said.
Israeli troops raided the Kamal Adwan Hospital in the north earlier Friday, detaining dozens of medical staff and causing heavy damage, according to the Health Ministry. Footage circulated online showing the courtyard bulldozed and the wards ransacked. Israeli troops withdrew on Saturday.
The head of the World Health Organization said 44 male staff members were detained at the hospital. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said only female staff, the hospital director and one male doctor were left to care for almost 200 patients.
Among those detained and taken away was Dr. Mohamed Obeid, head of the orthopedics department at nearby Al-Awda Hospital, according to Al-Awda Hospital. His location is unknown.
Throughout the Israel yearlong genocidal war, Israeli forces have stormed and bombarded a number of hospitals including the strip’s largest medical facility, Shifa Hospital.
Israel accuses Hamas of using medical facilities across Gaza for military purposes, allegations denied by hospital staff, who say the raids have recklessly endangered sick and wounded civilians.
The war began when several Palestinian resistance groups stormed into southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, causing 1,200 deaths and abducting around 250. Some 100 hostages are still inside Gaza, around a third of whom are believed to be dead.
Israeli genocide in Gaza has since killed more than 42,600 Palestinians, mostly women and children, according to the local Health Ministry.
The offensive has devastated much of the impoverished coastal territory and displaced around 90% of its population of 2.3 million, often multiple times.
Hundreds of thousands of people have crowded into squalid tent camps along the coast, and aid groups say hunger is rampant.