At least 25 people were killed in the morning attacks, according to Gaza's civil defense, which is searching through the rubble and rescuing those affected after the attacks. Reports from healthcare providers indicate 24 dead in three separate bombings.
Earlier, the civil defense had reported seven deaths in bombings that occurred during the night in the cities of Beit Lahia, Beit Hanun, Gaza, and Khan Yunis. It is unclear at this stage whether the different reports refer to the same attacks and casualties.
Nearly 1,900 people have been reported killed since Israel resumed airstrikes against the Palestinian area on March 18. At that time, a first phase of a fragile ceasefire had expired without the parties agreeing on a transition to phase two. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced over the weekend that the war effort would be stepped up in order to put even greater pressure on the Islamist movement Hamas in Gaza.
Without help for 50 days
Currently, Israel has blocked all aid deliveries to the devastated area for 50 days. Gaza has become a land of despair on the brink of collapse, warn leading UN voices.
"Hunger is spreading and deepening," writes Philippe Lazzarini, who heads the UN's refugee agency for Palestinians, Unrwa. He notes that it is happening with deliberate intent and human hand. The people of Gaza are being collectively punished while thousands of trucks with supplies are not allowed in, he writes further.
"Humanitarian aid is being used as a bargaining chip and as a weapon in war," writes Lazzarini.
"Probably the worst"
Last week, twelve major aid organizations announced that it is no longer a matter of risk of famine, but that famine is spreading throughout the entire population of Gaza.
It is true that we currently probably have the worst humanitarian situation we have seen so far in the war in Gaza, says Jens Lærke, spokesperson for the UN's humanitarian coordination agency Ocha.
Since the outbreak of war in October 2023, when Hamas had launched a large-scale attack on Israel, more than 51,000 people have been reported killed in Israeli attacks on Gaza.
