The Israeli military claimed yesterday that it had been targeting a senior member of Islamic Jihad in an attack on a post office that provided shelter to Gaza residents, killing at least 33 Palestinians and injuring 50, according to medical reports.
Families who had fled the 14-month-old conflict had taken sanctuary in the Nuseirat camp’s postal facility, and the strike late Thursday increased the number of fatalities in the enclave to 66, according to the medics.
Israel said it was targeting an Islamic Jihad leader who had attacked Israeli troops and civilians. It also accused the group of using the population and infrastructure of civilians as a human shield for its operations.
At the same time, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken urged Turkey to use its power to persuade Hamas to agree to a ceasefire in Gaza, saying yesterday that he saw “encouraging signs” of progress.
Following the overthrow of Bashar al-Assad’s regime, he met with Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan on the second stop of his Syria crisis tour, and he made these comments.
Following two Israeli strikes in southern Gaza earlier Thursday, 13 Palestinians were killed; Hamas and Gaza medics claimed they were part of a force defending aid trucks. “They were Hamas members attempting to hijack the shipment,” Israel’s military claimed.
Hamas-affiliated individuals were among the many people killed in the attacks on Rafah and Khan Younis, according to people close to the organization.
“The two airstrikes were intended to ensure the safe delivery of humanitarian aid,” the Israeli military said in a statement, accusing Hamas members of plotting to keep the aid from reaching Gaza’s civilians in need.
In response to the frequent hijackings of aid trucks by armed gangs, Hamas established a task force to deal with them. In recent months, more than two dozen gang members have been killed by Hamas-led forces, according to Hamas sources and medical professionals.
Since the offensive started on October 7, 2023, Hamas claimed that Israeli military strikes have killed at least 700 police officers assigned to guard aid trucks in Gaza.
Meanwhile, the Israeli military said it would respond to rockets fired from a number of districts in the center of Gaza City and ordered residents to leave on Thursday. On Thursday evening, scores of families moved out of the neighborhoods and headed toward the city center.
The United States-backed Arab mediators Egypt and Qatar have been trying for months to reach a ceasefire agreement between the two warring parties, but have been unsuccessful.
Speaking in Tel Aviv on Thursday, US national security adviser Jake Sullivan expressed his belief that a deal on a ceasefire and hostage release in Gaza may be imminent because Israel had indicated that it was prepared and there were indications of Hamas activity.
The Israeli military has destroyed large areas of Gaza, forcing almost all of the 2.3 million residents to flee their homes, causing fatal disease and starvation, and killing at least 44,875 people, according to Palestinian health officials.
