At least 85 Palestinians killed in Israeli strikes across Gaza

At least 85 Palestinians were killed and dozens wounded in Israeli air strikes across Gaza today after Israel resumed its bombing campaign and ground operations in the enclave, the Ministry of Health said.

A day after launching a new ground campaign in central Gaza, the Israeli military said today it had begun conducting ground offensives in the north of the enclave, along the coastal route in the area of Beit Lahia.

Palestinian medics said Israeli strikes targeted several houses in northern and southern areas of the Gaza Strip. Asked for comment, the Israeli occupation military said it was looking into the reports.

The military has resumed its air assaults on Gaza since Tuesday and launched ground operations on Wednesday, effectively abandoning a ceasefire with Hamas that had held since January in spite of Israel’s refusal to abide by its terms.

It said today that its forces had been engaged for the past 24 hours in what it described as a targeted ground operation to expand a buffer zone separating the northern and southern halves of Gaza, known as the Netzarim corridor.

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Israel ordered residents to stay away from the Salah Al-Din Road, the main north-south route, and said they should travel along the coast instead.

Israel killed more than 400 Palestinians on Tuesday alone, one of the deadliest days of the war.

Hamas said the Israeli ground operation and the incursion into the Netzarim Corridor were a “new and dangerous violation” of the two-month-old ceasefire agreement. In a statement, it reaffirmed its commitment to the ceasefire deal and called on mediators to “assume their responsibilities”.

The resumption of air strikes has sent Palestinian residents again fleeing for their lives from homes they had begun to reinhabit among the ruins of the devastated enclave.

Some Palestinians who tried to use the Salah Al-Din Road said they saw cars come under fire from Israeli troops advancing towards Netzarim. The fate of the passengers in the vehicles was unknown.

Some residents turned to social media to report the disappearance of some relatives, while others reported cases to the International Committee of the Red Cross.

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