 "The body of a Palestinian killed in an Israeli airstrike is brought to Shifa Hospital in Gaza City. File image/AP")
Israeli airstrikes overnight into Thursday (March 20) killed at least 70 Palestinians across the Gaza Strip, according to the Gazan health authorities.
The strikes targeted homes in the cities of Khan Younis and Rafah in southern Gaza, as well as the northern town of Beit Lahiya.
Israel resumed heavy strikes across Gaza on Tuesday (March 18), breaking a ceasefire that had paused the conflict and allowed for the release of more than two dozen hostages. Israel attributed the renewed fighting to Hamas, stating that the militant group rejected an Israeli-backed proposal that deviated from their prior agreement.
Hospitals report casualties
In the southern city of Rafah, the European Hospital reported that 26 people, mostly women and children, were killed in overnight strikes on two family homes. One of these strikes resulted in the deaths of a father and his seven children.
The Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis received the bodies of seven individuals who were killed in an overnight attack on a home.
Additionally, in northern Gaza, the Indonesian Hospital reported that it had received the bodies of seven people killed in a strike on a house in Beit Lahiya, a town near the border.
Israel’s relentless strikes on Gaza
The renewed ground operations came a day after more than 400 Palestinians were killed in airstrikes in one of the deadliest episodes since the beginning of the conflict in October 2023.
Since Tuesday, airstrikes have killed 510 Palestinians– primarily women and children, Reuters quoted a health official as saying.
On Wednesday (March 19), Israeli ground troops advanced in Gaza for the first time since the ceasefire took hold in January, seizing part of the Netzarim corridor, which separates the northern third of the territory from the south.
The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) had previously withdrawn from the area under a ceasefire that began in January.
The Israeli military has not yet commented on the latest strikes. The possibility of another ceasefire deal appears uncertain at the moment.
With inputs from AP