An Israeli airstrike in northern Gaza has reportedly killed 12 members of a family, including seven children, according to the Palestinian Civil Defence rescue agency. A video shared on the agency’s Telegram channel showed rescue workers retrieving victims from the rubble of the Khallah family’s home in Jabalia.
Civil defence spokesman Mahmoud Basal confirmed to AFP that all the deceased belonged to the same family, with the oldest child only six years old. The airstrike also injured 15 others, highlighting the ongoing humanitarian crisis in the region.
The Israeli army said in a statement to AFP that the strike targeted “several terrorists operating in a military structure belonging to Hamas” that threatened its forces. But it added that the initial number of casualties reported did not conform to their information.
The Pope denounced the bombing and targeting of children as “cruelty.” Francis said in an interview, “Yesterday children were bombed. This is cruelty, this is not war. I want to say it because it touches my heart.”
Israeli attacks across the Gaza Strip continued on Friday, marking more than 14 months of conflict. In one incident, a missile from a drone struck a residential building in the market street of Nuseirat refugee camp, killing at least eight people. Al Jazeera reported that in an airstrike on Beit Hanoon, four people – two girls and their parents – were killed. Bodies of three brothers were retrieved from the rubble of a home bombed close to Kamal Adwan Hospital.
The humanitarian situation in Gaza has significantly worsened, with UNRWA Senior Emergency Officer Louise Wateridge describing the region as a “graveyard.” She cited the dire living conditions coupled with heavy winter rains and continued hostilities. “An entire society here is now a graveyard … Over two million people are trapped,” she said. Due to 69% of the buildings having been destroyed or damaged, many families have had to live in shelters with little protection against the elements.
UNRWA provides services to nearly six million Palestinian refugees across Gaza, the occupied West Bank, Jordan, Lebanon, and Syria. This October, however, Israeli politicians took moves to block UNRWA operations in Israel and East Jerusalem. Similar moves against other relief agencies were said to be in the pipeline. In response, Sweden announced plans to stop funding UNRWA but was quick to promise to double its aid to Gaza via other means. UNRWA head Philippe Lazzarini reacted to Sweden’s decision, which he described as “disappointing” and poorly timed for Palestinian refugees.
In a dramatic turn of events, the UN General Assembly voted on a resolution to ask the ICJ for an advisory opinion on the obligations of Israel concerning the provision of humanitarian assistance in Palestine territories. Earlier this year, the ICJ judges ordered Israel to terminate its military offensive in southern Gaza and to ensure safety and humanitarian access for its residents. Israel has so far refused to implement the ruling. That ruling was part of a case brought by South Africa, joined by other countries, charging that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza.
