Over 160 killed in 24 hours amid Israeli attacks on Gaza
Israel bombed areas of Jabalia in the northern Gaza Strip overnight, with fighting throughout Sunday morning, residents and Palestinian media said, as Gaza health authorities and the Israeli military both announced mounting death tolls.
Israel claims it has achieved almost complete operational control over northern Gaza and is preparing to expand a ground offensive against Hamas fighters to other areas. But Jabalia residents reported persistent aerial bombardment and shelling from Israeli tanks, which they said had moved further into the town on Saturday.
Israel pushed on Sunday with its military campaign, as the focus of the deadly combat shifted to southern Gaza where most displaced Palestinians are trapped.
A Gaza health ministry spokesman said on Sunday 166 Palestinians had been killed in the past 24 hours, taking the total Palestinian death toll to 20,424. Tens of thousands have been wounded, with many bodies believed trapped under rubble. Almost all of Gaza’s 2.3 million people have been displaced.
The Israeli military said eight soldiers had been killed, bringing to 154 its published combat losses since it began its ground incursion in response to Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack, in which 1,140 people were killed in Israel, and about 250 abducted, according to an AFP tally based on Israeli figures.
The White House said that US President Joe Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had discussed the Israeli campaign. Biden “emphasized the critical need to protect the civilian population including those supporting the humanitarian aid operation, and the importance of allowing civilians to move safely away from areas of ongoing fighting”, the White House said.
US claims dismissed
Meanwhile, the US claimed on Friday that Iran was “deeply involved” in planning operations against commercial vessels in the Red Sea and its intelligence was critical to enable Yemen’s Houthi movement to target ships.
Houthis, who say their attacks are in support of Palestinians under siege by Israel in Gaza, have targeted commercial shipping in the Red Sea with drones and missiles, forcing shippers to change course and take longer routes around the southern tip of Africa.
Iran denies involvement in attacks by the Houthis in the Red Sea with its deputy foreign minister saying the group was acting on its own.
“The resistance (Houthis) has its own tools... and acts in accordance with its own decisions and capabilities,” said Ali Baqeri.
“The fact that certain powers, such as the Americans and the Israelis, suffer strikes from the resistance movement... should in no way call into question the reality of the strength of the resistance in the region,” he told Mehr News Agency.
Earlier on Saturday, Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian said Washington had previously asked Iran to advise Yemenis not to act against US and Israeli interests in the region.
REUTERS and AFP contributed to this report.