Israeli attacks kill at least 25 Palestinians, including six-year-old twins, in Gaza
Media reports citing medics on the ground said many children were among those killed in the relentless airstrikes, which hit homes, civilian gatherings, and tents
Highlights:
- At least 16 Palestinians killed in two strikes on Gaza City
- US Secretary of State Marco Rubio visits Netanyahu
- Arab and Islamic leaders meet in Qatar after Israeli attack
- Hamas denounces Rubio-Netanyahu visit to Western Wall
Gaza City became a graveyard for children since yesterday (15 September) after a series of Israeli attacks killed at least 25 Palestinians, including six-year-old twins.
Media reports citing medics on the ground said many children were among those killed in the relentless airstrikes, which hit homes, civilian gatherings, and tents.
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The al-Ghafri Tower in Gaza City, a multi-story building that also housed displaced Palestinians in its vicinity, was completely levelled by Israeli airstrikes. Two Palestinians have been killed while seeking aid south of Khan Younis in southern Gaza, sources at the Nasser Medical Complex tell Al Jazeera.
Reuters reports witnesses saying the strike spread panic, causing thousands to flee to southern Gaza, even though conditions there are dire and food is in short supply.
Diplomacy unfolds yet death toll mounts
Meanwhile, in Jerusalem, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The visit comes amid tensions with other US allies in the Middle East over last week's attack by Israel on Hamas leaders in Qatar, reports Reuters.
"Rubio's visit is a clear message that America stands with Israel in the face of terror," Netanyahu said.
While diplomacy unfolded in Jerusalem and Doha, the Palestinian death toll kept mounting.
The strikes hit two family homes on Al-Jalaa Street, killing 10 people, including children. In the Al-Rimal neighbourhood, an Israeli army attack on a tent sheltering displaced civilians killed six people, including three children.
Five more people were killed when army forces shelled a civilian gathering in the Al-Karama area, reports Al Jazeera.
However, the UN and numerous countries say its tactics amount to forced mass displacement and that conditions in the humanitarian zone are dire, with food in short supply.
"Do you know what is displacement? It is extracting the soul from your body, it is humiliation and another form of death," said Ghada, 50, a mother of five from Sabra neighbourhood in Gaza City who was refusing to leave.
"They tell us to go south, and when we do, there is no guarantee they won't bomb us there, so why bother?" she said via a chat app to Reuters.
Meanwhile, Hamas said the visit to the Western Wall, which Muslims call the Al-Buraq Wall, was an assault on the sanctity of the Al-Aqsa mosque inside the compound.
The group said the visit reaffirmed "the bias and full partnership of the current US administration in the occupation's crimes against our people, land, and holy sites".
'What can we expect?'
A State Department spokesperson said late this day that Rubio was proud to visit the site with Netanyahu and that this reaffirmed "America's recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's eternal capital".
In Doha, leaders were set to warn that Israel's attack in Qatar threatened coexistence and efforts to normalise ties in the region, according to a draft resolution seen by Reuters.
At least one ordinary Palestinian was dismissive.
"We have never placed much hope in Arab leaders and their summits," said Ahmed Nemer, 45, from Gaza City.
"The final statement is written by the Americans or is vetted by the Americans, so what can we expect?"
Israel's war on Gaza, which has killed over 64,000 Palestinians since October 2023, has intensified as it seeks to seize control of the Strip's biggest urban centre and displace its population of about one million people.
According to Hamas, at least 350,000 people have fled their homes, while 1,600 residential buildings and 13,000 tents have been destroyed, since 11 August, the day after Netanyahu announced plans to take control of Gaza City.
The war has displaced a million people and left the enclave facing famine.
