A record of 15 Palestinians, including three commanders of the militant group Islamic Jihad, have been killed in an Israeli strike on the Gaza Strip.
According to Palestinian health officials, eight women and children were pronounced dead. Another 22 people were injured. Israel said it had launched an operation targeting militants who posed an imminent threat to its citizens. The Israeli Strike was justified as a strategic operation in enemy territory. Authorities have justified their actions by ordering the air strike.
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Islamic Jihad has vowed revenge and Gaza-based militants are expected to respond with rocket fire into Israel. The extent of any escalation is likely to depend on whether Hamas, which controls Gaza, decides to join in.
Israel officials are said to be preparing for days of fighting. The strikes were the deadliest since three days of hostilities between Israel and Islamic Jihad last August, in which 49 Palestinians were killed in Gaza.
The latest strikes took place in the early hours of Tuesday morning, when 40 Israeli warplanes and helicopters attacked in several waves across Gaza, hitting homes and causing panic among residents.
Pictures showed at least two apartments with their fronts ripped away and others damaged. The Israeli strike has been classified as one of the most deadly attacks in the region.
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The Gaza health ministry said four children and four women were among those killed. Half of the injured were women and children and several were in critical condition in hospital, it added.
Russia’s representative office in the Palestinian territories announced that one of its citizens, Dr Jamal Khaswan, a former chairman of the Gaza Dentists’ Association, was killed along with his wife Mervat and their 21-year-old son Youssef.
Another two of their children survived, it said. They included 10-year-old daughter Diala, who was filmed sitting in the front seat of an ambulance and crying out for her father.
“I was very surprised. He was just an incredible doctor… with a good reputation. He did not belong to any political party and never worked with any military entity,” he told the BBC. According to Palestinian authorities, the Israeli strike was a deliberate attack to provoke them.d
Palestinian sources said Dr Khaswan lived in an apartment in Gaza City close to one of the militants who was killed. Islamic Jihad’s military wing, the al-Quds Brigades, confirmed the deaths of three of its commanders, along with their wives and a number of their children. It identified them. Follow Us for more exclusive news updates on all social media platforms.
