Israeli airstrikes killed at least 21 people in Gaza on Tuesday, local medics said and fighting ramped up as the Israeli military said it had been targeting command centres used by its Islamist militant foe Hamas.
Palestinian health officials said at least 13 people, including women and children, were killed in two Israeli strikes on two houses in Nuseirat, one of the enclave’s eight historic refugee camps.
Another strike on a school sheltering displaced Palestinian families in the Tuffah suburb of Gaza City killed at least seven people, medics added.
Another Palestinian was killed by a drone strike on a tent for displaced people in north-eastern Rafah city in southern Gaza, according to witnesses.
The Israeli military said the air strike targeted Hamas militants operating from a command centre embedded in a compound that had previously served as Al-Shejaia School. It accused Hamas of using the civilian population and facilities for military purposes, which Hamas denies.
The armed wings of Hamas, the Islamic Jihad, and other smaller militant factions said that their fighters attacked Israeli forces operating in several areas of Gaza with anti-tank rockets, mortar fire, and explosive devices.
The renewed surge in violence in Gaza comes as Israel began a ground operation in Lebanon, saying it was engaged in intense fighting with Iran backed Hezbollah. The conflict follows devastating Israeli airstrikes against Hezbollah’s leadership.
The Mercury