At least 71 killed, nearly 300 wounded in Gaza attack

The attack is said to have taken place in an area where many Palestinian refugees are located, and the Hamas-controlled health ministry in Gaza condemned the attack in a statement, calling it a “brutal massacre.”

According to Israel, the attack was targeting Hamas leader Mohammed Deif, who was said to be hiding in a building in the area. He was one of the masterminds behind Hamas’s attack on Israel on October 7 last year. Deif has been on Israel’s most wanted list for decades and has survived seven Israeli assassination attempts, the most recent in 2021, Reuters reported.

Hamas claims in one The statement said that Israel's claim that it targeted Hamas leaders in the attack is incorrect.

“This is not the first time that Israel has claimed to have targeted Palestinian leaders, only to be proven to be a liar.”

Reuters said images from the scene showed ambulances heading towards the smoke-filled, dust-filled area and people, including women and children, fleeing in panic.

Eyewitnesses told the news agency that the attack came as a surprise.

– They're all gone, my whole family is gone… Where are my brothers? They're all gone, they're all gone. There's nothing. Our children are torn apart, they're torn apart. Shame, says a woman.

Many of the wounded were taken to Nasser Hospital in southern Gaza, which is on the verge of collapse. Associated Press journalists at the scene at Nasser Hospital counted more than 40 bodies in the hospital, and witnesses described an attack that took place in several rounds.

Gaza photographer Hussein Abdel Jawad He and his family were forced to flee the eastern parts of Khan Younis less than two weeks ago when Israel again called on Palestinian civilians to evacuate. They fled to the area west of the city, where they thought it would be safe. He told DN that Saturday’s attack took place about 300 meters from the family’s tent.

– It was early in the morning and the atmosphere was calm. Then suddenly it turned into hell. The noise was terrible and smoke and sand covered the whole area.

Hussein Abdul Jawad He says some were still sleeping in their tents and children were playing outside the tents when the attack happened.

– What scares me is that this massacre was committed in an area classified as safe. Many bodies are still unidentified and many people here cannot find their family members and relatives. They fear that they are among the dead.

He also says that people live under the sand.

– Imagine, I say sand, because this is not an area with many buildings, it is like a desert. The tents of the displaced do not protect against shrapnel and flying objects.

Another Israeli attack on a prayer hall in a camp for displaced Palestinians west of Gaza City reportedly killed at least 10 people on Saturday, Reuters reported, citing the health ministry.