At least 14 people killed in Israeli strikes on Gaza Strip, Qatari TV channel Al Jazeera reported.
According to the report, 11 people were killed in an attack on a house in Zuwayda town, located in central Palestinian enclave. Three more people were killed in shelling of a residential building in Khan Yunis town in southern Gaza Strip. There are also wounded, but their number is not specified.
On September 16, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu confirmed the start of an intensive offensive in Gaza City. Its stated goal is to defeat the radical Palestinian movement Hamas. Previously, the Israeli army had repeatedly warned the local population to leave the combat zone, including by dropping leaflets on the city.
The situation in the Middle East escalated sharply after the invasion of armed Hamas supporters from the Gaza Strip into Israeli territory on October 7, 2023, in which residents of border villages were killed and over 250 hostages were taken. In response, Israel launched a military operation in the enclave with the aim of destroying Hamas's military and political structures and freeing all those kidnapped. According to the latest figures from the Gaza Ministry of Health, the total number of Palestinians killed in the Gaza Strip as a result of the fighting has exceeded 65,000, over 167,000 have been injured, and at least 442 local residents, including 147 children, have died of starvation.