Israeli strikes kill 52 in Gaza

Deir al-Balah: Israeli strikes killed at least 52 people in the Gaza Strip on Monday, including 36 in a school-turned-shelter that was struck as people slept, igniting their belongings, according to local health officials. The military said it targeted militants operating from the school.

Israel renewed its offensive in March after ending a ceasefire with Hamas. It has vowed to seize control of Gaza and keep fighting until Hamas is destroyed or disarmed, and until it returns the remaining 58 hostages, a third of them believed to be alive, from the October 7, 2023, attack that ignited the war. Israel began allowing a trickle of humanitarian aid into Gaza last week after blocking all food, medicine, fuel or other goods from entering for 2 1/2 months. Aid groups have warned of famine and say the aid that has come in is nowhere near enough to meeting mounting needs.

A new aid system supported by Israel and the United States but rejected by UN agencies and aid groups is expected to begin operations as soon as Monday, despite the resignation of the American leading the effort, who said it would not be able to operate independently.

Israel says it plans to seize full control of Gaza and facilitate what it describes as the voluntary migration of its over two million population, a plan rejected by Palestinians and much of the international community.

Israel’s military campaign has destroyed vast areas of Gaza and internally displaced some 90 per cent of its population. Many have fled multiple times. The strike on the school in the Daraj neighbourhood of Gaza City also wounded dozens of people, said Fahmy Awad, head of the ministry’s emergency service.