Israel has begun levelling high-rise buildings in Gaza City as part of its military offensive on the city, which has seen it flout mounting international condemnation against the operation.
Israel attacked the 12-storey Mushtaha Tower, with reports that a number of civilians were wounded and killed in the strike. The Israeli military warned earlier that it would target the buildings “in the coming days”.
Gaza City has borne the brunt of Israel’s attacks, which have killed 44 people, including seven children, across the enclave, with strikes killing three in the Sarah neighbourhood of Gaza City, as well as the al-Rimal al-Janoubi neighbourhood, where another three were killed, according to Palestinian news agency Wafa.
Israel’s military offensive on Gaza City has seen the city become one of “fear, flight and funerals”, according to UNICEF’s Tess Ingram, who also called for an end to the offensive, saying “we must do everything in our power to prevent it.”
Ingram’s comments come after Israel’s military announced on Thursday it had taken control over 40 percent of the city while preparing to conquer further parts of the city.
Meanwhile, in the occupied West Bank, settler attacks in Khallet al-Dabaa in the area of Masafer Yatta, south of Hebron, injured 20 Palestinians, including a three-month-old baby.