Peace talks were nowhere in sight and, despite Yahya Sinwar’s death, the violence seemed only to increase, as Israel struck northern Gaza and Hezbollah fired dozens of projectiles.
Israeli forces pounded targets in the northern Gaza town of Jabaliya on Saturday, killing at least 33 people and injuring dozens of others in the bombardment, a Palestinian emergency services group said.
Israel has surrounded Jabaliya for a week as it seeks to root out Hamas fighters who it says have reorganized in the area. Since Friday, approximately 20,000 Palestinians have fled the neighborhood, according to UNRWA, the main United Nations agency aiding Palestinians in Gaza, amid Israel’s bombardment. Paltel, the largest telecommunications provider in Gaza, said that internet service was completely down in northern Gaza.
Fighting also escalated in Lebanon on Saturday, as the Israeli military targeted several areas outside of Beirut in airstrikes that covered the area in clouds of dust. The resurgence in attacks, after several days of relative calm, came after Hezbollah warned of “a new and escalating phase” in the conflict with Israel.
In Gaza, the Gazan Health Ministry reported that Israeli forces had targeted the entrance of the laboratory at Kamal Adwan Hospital, a major facility near Jabaliya, killing one person and injuring several others. The ministry has warned of a crisis in Gaza’s hospitals, citing fuel shortages and a lack of essential medicines and medical supplies.
Israeli forces were also operating near the Indonesian Hospital, a medical center that was financed by charities from Indonesia and lies on Jabaliya’s northern outskirts. Israeli troops fired gunshots and artillery in the direction of the hospital, the Health Ministry said, adding that more than 40 patients remained at the facility.
Without directly responding to the ministry’s claim, the Israeli military said there had been no “intentional fire” at the hospital.
