Israeli strikes kill 36 in Gaza, including a mother and newborn, as more aid is allowed in
Israeli strikes kill 36 in Gaza, including a mother and newborn, as more aid is allowed in
DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — Israeli strikes killed at least 36 Palestinians across the Gaza Strip on Monday, including a pregnant woman and her newborn, local health officials said. Israel meanwhile eased some aid restrictions as it came under mounting pressure over the spiraling hunger crisis in the war-ravaged territory.
Israel announced Sunday that the military would pause operations in Gaza City, Deir al-Balah and Muwasi for 10 hours a day until further notice to allow for the improved flow of aid and designate secure routes for aid delivery.
Aid agencies have welcomed the new measures but say they are not enough to counter worsening starvation in the Palestinian territory.
Israel said it would continue military operations alongside the new humanitarian measures. The Israeli military had no immediate comment about the latest strikes, which occurred outside the time frame for the pause Israel declared would be held between 10 a.m. and 8 p.m.
Newborn dies after complex surgery
The newborn died hours after being delivered in a complex surgery. She had been placed in an incubator and was breathing with assistance from a ventilator, footage from The Associated Press showed.
Her mother, Soad al-Shaer, who was seven months pregnant with her, was among 12 Palestinians killed in an Israeli airstrike on a house and neighboring tents in the Muwasi area of Khan Younis, according to Nasser Hospital, which received the bodies.
Another strike hit a two-story house in Khan Younis, killing at least 11 people, more than half of them women and children, according to the hospital. At least five others were killed in strikes elsewhere in Gaza, according to other hospitals.
The Israeli military did not immediately respond to a request for comment on most of the strikes. It said it was not aware of one strike in Gaza City during the pause that health officials said killed one person.
Israel says it only targetes militants and blames civilian deaths on Hamas because the militants operate in densely populated areas. The daily airstrikes across the territory frequently kill women and children.
Israel allows more aid to enter
Images of emaciated children have sparked outrage around the world, including from Israel’s close allies. U.S. President Donald Trump on Sunday called the images of emaciated and malnourished children in Gaza “terrible.”
Israel has restricted aid to varying degrees throughout the war. In March, it cut off the entry of all goods, including fuel, food and medicine, to pressure Hamas to free hostages.
Israel partially lifted those restrictions in May but also pushed ahead on a new U.S.-backed aid delivery system that has been wracked by chaos and violence. Traditional aid providers have encountered a breakdown in law and order surrounding their deliveries.
COGAT, the Israeli military body in charge of coordinating aid shipments, said U.N. agencies collected 120 trucks for distribution on Sunday and that another 180 trucks had been allowed into Gaza.
The U.N. and aid groups say the territory needs 500-600 trucks a day to meet its needs. Israel’s blockade and military operations have destroyed nearly all food production in the territory of roughly 2 million Palestinians.
Two air force planes from Jordan and the United Arab Emirates meanwhile airdropped 17 tons of humanitarian aid in Gaza on Monday.
The head of the United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees, Philippe Lazzarini, warned that airdrops are “expensive, inefficient and can even kill starving civilians” and won’t reverse the increasing starvation.
The 17 tons of aid would fill less than one aid truck, according to World Food Program’s calculations of almost 19 tons per aid truck.
Seven killed near aid site, officials say
The Awda hospital in central Gaza said it received the bodies of seven Palestinians who it said were killed Monday by Israeli fire close to an aid distribution site run by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, an Israeli-backed American contractor. The hospital said 20 others were wounded close to the site. GHF did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Hamas started the war with its Oct. 7, 2023, attack, in which Palestinian militants killed some 1,200 people and abducted 251 others. They still hold 50, and Israel believed more than half the remaining hostages are dead. Most of the rest were released in ceasefires or other deals.
Israel’s retaliatory offensive has killed more than 59,800 Palestinians, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry. Its count doesn’t distinguish between militants and civilians. The ministry operates under the Hamas government. The U.N. and other international organizations see it as the most reliable source of data on casualties.
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Magdy reported from Cairo.
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Follow AP’s war coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/israel-hamas-war.
By WAFAA SHURAFA and SAMY MAGDY
Associated Press
