Israeli strikes kill 32 across Gaza: medics

Published July 30, 2014
Heavy smoke and fire billow following an Israeli military strike in Gaza City. — Photo by AFP
Heavy smoke and fire billow following an Israeli military strike in Gaza City. — Photo by AFP

GAZA CITY: Israeli bombardments in the early hours of Wednesday killed 32 Palestinians in Gaza, including 20 at a UN school, medics said, as the conflict between Israel and Hamas entered its 23rd day.

A shelling shortly after 5:30 am (0230 GMT) killed 20 people at a UN school being used as a shelter for those displaced by the war, medics said, without giving immediate details.

A UN official confirmed the shelling, saying it hit a bathroom and two classrooms on the site in Jabalia refugee camp, but gave a lower initial toll of between 13 and 15 dead.

A shelling earlier in the northern Gaza Strip killed an 11-year-old handicapped girl, emergency services spokesman Ashraf al-Qudra said, with a subsequent shelling in the centre of the small coastal territory killing a 16-year-old girl.

A strike shortly afterwards in the southern city of Khan Yunis killed nine members of a single family, Qudra said, including one child who could not immediately be identified.

A middle-aged man was killed early in the morning in the southern city of Rafah.

The deaths brought the total Palestinian toll from an Israeli operation to stamp out militant rocket fire to at least 1,262, according to Qudra's figures.

On the Israeli side, militant fire, including cross-border rocket fire, has killed 53 Israeli soldiers in addition to three civilians inside Israel.

Opinion

Editorial

Kurram atrocity
Updated 22 Nov, 2024

Kurram atrocity

It would be a monumental mistake for the state to continue ignoring the violence in Kurram.
Persistent grip
22 Nov, 2024

Persistent grip

PAKISTAN has now registered 50 polio cases this year. We all saw it coming and yet there was nothing we could do to...
Green transport
22 Nov, 2024

Green transport

THE government has taken a commendable step by announcing a New Energy Vehicle policy aiming to ensure that by 2030,...
Military option
Updated 21 Nov, 2024

Military option

While restoring peace is essential, addressing Balochistan’s socioeconomic deprivation is equally important.
HIV/AIDS disaster
21 Nov, 2024

HIV/AIDS disaster

A TORTUROUS sense of déjà vu is attached to the latest health fiasco at Multan’s Nishtar Hospital. The largest...
Dubious pardon
21 Nov, 2024

Dubious pardon

IT is disturbing how a crime as grave as custodial death has culminated in an out-of-court ‘settlement’. The...