'Dangerous escalation'

Dozens die in Israeli airstrikes

- Jason Burke

Israeli attacks in Gaza killed 33 people and injured many more, medical officials in the territory said yesterday, in one of the most serious escalations of violence since the US-backed ceasefire came into effect last month.

Officials at Nasser hospital in Khan Younis said they had received the bodies of 17 people, including five women and five children, after four Israeli airstrikes targeted tents sheltering displaced people. In Gaza City, medical officials said two airstrikes had killed 16 people, including seven children, bringing the death toll to 33 over about 12 hours.

Israel said it had launched the attacks after its soldiers came under fire in Khan Younis on Wednesday, though they suffered no reported casualties. Hamas condemned the Israeli strikes as a “shocking massacre” and denied firing towards Israeli troops.

Palestinians in Gaza said it was as if the two-year war had never stopped. Officials in the territory say more than 300 people have been killed by Israeli strikes since the ceasefire.