The strike came two days after the International Court of Justice ordered Israel to end its military offensive in Rafah, where more than half of Gaza’s population haDEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip — Palestinian medics said an Israeli airstrike killed at least 22 people Sunday when it hit tents for displaced people in the southern ordered Israel to end its military offensive in Rafah, where more than half of Gaza’s population had sought shelter before Israel’s recent incursion.
The society asserted that the location had been designated by Israel as a “humanitarian area.” The neighborhood is part of areas that Israel’s military ordered evacuated earlier this month.that set off air raid sirens as far away as Tel Aviv for the first time in months in a show of resilience more than seven months into Israel’s massive air, sea and ground offensive.
Egypt refuses to reopen its side of the Rafah crossing until control of the Gaza side is handed back to Palestinians. It agreed to temporarily divert traffic through Israel’s Kerem Shalom crossing, Gaza’s main cargo terminal, after a call between U.S. President Joe Biden and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi.
The war between Israel and Hamas has killed nearly 36,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, which does not distinguish between civilians and fighters in its count. The Health Ministry said the bodies of 81 people killed by Israeli strikes had been brought to hospitals over the past 24 hours. Israel blames civilian deaths on Hamas because the militants operate in dense, residential areas.