(BBC News) At least 114 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli air strikes across the Gaza Strip since dawn, health officials and rescuers say.
Fifty-six people, including women and children, were killed when homes and tents sheltering displaced families were bombed overnight in the southern city of Khan Younis, the local Nasser hospital said.
The Israeli military said it struck Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad fighters in southern Gaza.
The Hamas-run Civil Defence agency also reported deadly strikes in the northern town of Jabalia, including an attack on a health clinic and prayer hall in Jabalia refugee camp that it said killed 13 people.
Israeli forces have been intensifying their bombardment of what they say are Hamas fighters and infrastructure ahead of a planned expansion of their ground offensive in Gaza.
It comes as US President Donald Trump visits the region and indirect negotiations on a new ceasefire and hostage release deal between Hamas and Israel continue.
The streets of Khan Younis were filled with funeral processions and grieving families on Thursday morning, following what residents said was the deadliest set of air strikes in the city since Israel resumed its offensive almost two months ago.
On Wednesday, Israeli strikes killed at least 80 people across the territory, including 59 in Jabalia town and refugee camp, according to hospitals and the Civil Defence.
The Israeli military said it struck Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad fighters in the north of the territory on Tuesday night. It had warned residents of Jabalia and neighbouring areas to evacuate on Tuesday after rockets were launched into Israel.
Israeli evacuation orders issued on Wednesday afternoon also caused panic among residents of a crowded area of Gaza City, in the north.
The Israeli military said a hospital, a university and several schools sheltering displaced people in the Rimal neighbourhood had become “terrorist strongholds” and that it would soon attack them with “intense force”.
Separately, a US-backed organisation said it would start work in Gaza within two weeks as part of a new, heavily criticised US-Israeli aid distribution plan.
The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation said it had asked Israel to let the UN and others resume deliveries until it was set up.
UN agencies have insisted they will not co-operate with the plan – which is in line with one previously approved by Israel’s government – saying it contradicted fundamental humanitarian principles.
Israel has not allowed any aid or other supplies into Gaza for 10 weeks, and aid agencies have warned of mass starvation among the 2.1 million population.
Israel imposed the blockade on March 2 and resumed its offensive against Hamas two weeks later, ending a two-month ceasefire. It said it wanted to put pressure on Hamas to release its remaining 58 hostages, up to 23 of whom are believed to be alive.
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c4gewwg1wlvo
