Israeli airstrikes resulted in the deaths of at least 68 Palestinians throughout the Gaza Strip on Thursday, including casualties at a tent camp where the leader of the Hamas-controlled police force, his deputy, and nine displaced individuals were killed, according to Gaza authorities. Israel identified the deputy as the head of Hamas’ security forces in southern Gaza.
The strike took place in the Al-Mawasi district, which had previously been designated as a humanitarian zone for civilians during the ongoing 14-month conflict between Israel and Hamas, the governing body of Gaza.
According to the Hamas-run Gaza interior ministry, Mahmoud Salah, the director general of Gaza’s police department, and his aide, Hussam Shahwan, were killed while they were assessing the situation for residents of the camp. The ministry condemned the attack, stating, “By committing the crime of assassinating the director general of police in the Gaza Strip, the occupation is insisting on spreading chaos in the enclave and deepening the human suffering of citizens.”
The Israeli military reported that it carried out an intelligence-driven strike in Al-Mawasi, located just west of Khan Younis, targeting Shahwan, whom they claimed led Hamas forces in southern Gaza, but did not acknowledge Salah’s death. Philippe Lazzarini, head of the U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA), remarked on social media, “As the year begins, we got … another reminder that there is no humanitarian zone let alone a safe zone” in Gaza. Each day without a ceasefire leads to further tragedy.
Thursday’s death toll was one of the highest recorded in recent weeks. Additional Israeli airstrikes resulted in the deaths of at least 57 Palestinians, including six at the interior ministry headquarters in Khan Younis, as well as others in the Jabalia refugee camp in northern Gaza, the Shati (Beach) camp, the Maghazi camp in central Gaza, and Gaza City.
The Israeli military stated that it targeted Hamas militants believed to be operating within a command and control center “embedded inside the Khan Younis municipality building in the Humanitarian Area.” When questioned about the reported death toll from Thursday, a spokesperson for the Israeli military asserted that the operations in Gaza were conducted in accordance with international law and that “feasible precautions to mitigate civilian harm” were taken.
The Israeli military has accused Gaza militants of utilizing densely populated residential areas for cover, a claim that Hamas denies. Meanwhile, Hamas’ smaller ally, Islamic Jihad, reported launching rockets into the southern Israeli kibbutz of Holit near Gaza on Thursday. The Israeli military confirmed intercepting one projectile that had crossed from southern Gaza.
According to Gaza’s health ministry, Israel has killed over 45,500 Palestinians during the conflict. The majority of Gaza’s 2.3 million residents have been displaced, and much of the densely populated coastal territory lies in ruins. The conflict was ignited by Hamas’ cross-border attack on southern Israel on October 7, 2023, which resulted in the deaths of 1,200 individuals and the abduction of 251 others to Gaza, as per Israeli reports.
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