WORLDWIDE:
At least 22 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli airstrikes across Gaza in the past 24 hours, health officials said on Friday, as the humanitarian situation in the besieged territory grows increasingly dire under Israel’s ongoing blockade.
Meanwhile, a ship belonging to the Gaza Freedom Flotilla—carrying 30 pro-Palestinian activists—was reportedly hit by drones in international waters off Malta.
No injuries were reported, but the vessel caught fire and lost communication after its electrical systems were damaged.
The Maltese government confirmed all 15 crew member and an additional 15 passenger on the vessel were safe, but they refused to board a tug vessel. Total 30 people were on the ship.
The vessel was carrying humanitarian supplies bound for Gaza. However the ship cannot move because it is heavily damaged.
Israeli officials have not commented on the attack. The flotilla group accused Israel or a close ally of carrying it out.
The Gaza Health Ministry said eight members of a single family died in Bureij camp, while strikes in Khan Younis and Abasan al-Kabira killed multiple women and children.
The mounting death toll follows weeks of unrelenting bombardment and a near-total ban on aid, now in its third month.
Amjad Shawa, director of the Palestinian Non-Governmental Organisations Network, said the besieged enclave has run out of food, medical supplies and nutritional supplements needed to treat vulnerable children.
“We have no food supplies or supplementary materials or medications for these children,” Shawa . “The cases will become more severe, and there is a serious concern we will see more fatalities in the coming days, the whole Strip is starving, and the majority of children are suffering from malnutrition,” he said.
With health infrastructure devastated by months of conflict, he added, medical facilities are ill-equipped to cope. “Hospitals are largely destroyed and out of service.
They simply cannot handle the surge in patients without essential supplies,” he said.
The Gaza Health Ministry said eight members of a single family died in Bureij camp, while strikes in Khan Younis and Abasan al-Kabira killed multiple women and children.
The mounting death toll follows weeks of unrelenting bombardment and a near-total ban on aid, now in its third month.
