U.S. MUST CHANGE ITS APPROACH FOR ANY TALKS: IRAN'S FOREIGN MINISTER

An Israeli airstrike in southern Gaza killed a Hamas political leader, Salah al-Bardaweel, on Sunday, the militant group said, as Palestinian officials put the death toll from nearly 18 months of conflict at over 50,000.

- Agencies

Agencies [e-mail] CAIRO/GAZA STRIP:

Hamas said the airstrike on Khan Younis killed Bardaweel and his wife.

The Israeli military confirmed in a statement on Sunday that it had killed the Hamas official on Saturday. "This elimination further degrades Hamas' military and government capabilities," the military added.

After two months of relative calm in the war, Gazans have again been fleeing for their lives after Israel effectively abandoned a ceasefire, launching a new all-out air and ground campaign on Tuesday against Hamas.

Explosions echoed throughout the north, central and southern Gaza Strip early on Sunday, as Israeli planes hit several targets in those areas in what witnesses said was an escalation of the attacks that began earlier in the week.

At least 30 Palestinians had been killed in Israeli strikes on Rafah and Khan Younis so far on Sunday, health authorities said. Those killed included three municipal employees, medics said.

Bardaweel was a member of the Hamas decision-making body, the political office, and had held posts such as heading the Hamas delegation for indirect truce talks with Israel in 2009 and led the group's media office in 2005.