6 Palestinians Killed, 5 Houses Bombed in Israeli Airstrikes on Gaza Strip
Death Toll Rises to 31, including 4 Women and 6 Children
The Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) continue their widescale aggression on the Gaza Strip, which began at dawn on Tuesday, 09 May 2023. After the Palestinian Centre for Human Rights (PCHR) issued its press release, IOF warplanes conducted more airstrikes on residential houses, agricultural lands, sites of the Palestinian armed groups, and others. As a result, 6 Palestinians, who were all members of the Palestinian armed groups, were killed, and others were wounded. Thus, the death toll since the Israeli aggression started has risen to 31, including 15 civilians: 6 children and 4 women. According to the Ministry of Health (MOH)’s data, the number of injuries has risen to 106, including 32 children and 17 women.
The Israeli airstrikes reflect the Israeli occupation’s intention to inflict harm to Palestinians by unjustifiably and unnecessarily bombing and destroying houses, side by side with the continued assassinations as the Israeli Chief of General Staff stated they aim to kill as many top-tier Islamic Jihad commanders as possible. All of this occurs under full cover of Israel’s top political echelons and the international community’s silence and complicity.
This comes at a time the humanitarian impact of IOF closure of Gaza Strip’s crossings exacerbates, including banning the travel of patients and preventing entry of fuel needed for the operation of the power plant amid warnings that the fuel has run out; forcing the plant to shut down and decreasing the power supply hours. All of this would lead to catastrophic repercussions on many sectors.
The following are the most significant developments:
On 11 May 2023
At 16:00, Ahmad Mahmoud Abu Daqqa (43), a commander in Al-Quds Brigades, was killed, and 4 others, including a woman and a child, were wounded in an airstrike that destroyed a house in Bani Suhaila village, east of Khan Yunis. IOF published a footage of their jets tracking Abu Daqqa until he entered the house before bombing and destroying it. This proves that the occupation intends to inflict harm and destruction, and not to only assassinate the targets, as it claims. The Israeli forces announced that in a joint targeted operation between the Israeli Forces and Shin Bet, the deputy commander of the rocket force in the Al-Quds Brigades was targeted.
At 16:00, an Israeli drone targeted for the 3rd time within 5 hours Zakaria ‘Abed Rabbu’s house in Beit Hanoun. As a result, the 2-storey house of 2 apartments housing 2 families of 9, including 3 women and 4 children, sustained partial damage.
At 17:00, Husain Yousef Dallol (23) and Mohammed Suliman Dared (32) were killed, and 2 members of Palestinian armed groups were injured in an Israeli airstrike that targeted them in eastern Shuja’iyya neighborhood in Gaza City.
At 18:40, IOF warplanes launched 6 missiles at Bashir family house in Dir al-Balah. As a result, the 2-storey house of 4 residential apartments was completely destroyed, displacing 4 families of 13, including 4 children and 6 women.
At 19:30, IOF warplanes launched a missile at Zuhair Abu Khater’s house in Beit Lahia, completely destroying the 2-storey house and rendering 2 families of 10, including 3 women and 2 children, homeless. It should be noted that Israeli drones fired 4 missiles at Abu Khater’s house 20 minutes before being targeted by IOF warplanes.
At 21:20, Abdul Haleem Jawdat al-Najjar (21) was killed, and another was injured in an Israeli airstrike targeting them in Jabalia refugee camp, north of the Gaza Strip. Both of them were members of Palestinian armed groups. The next day at dawn, the injured succumbed to his injury and was identified as ‘Elian ‘Atah ‘Elian Abu Wadi (36).
At 23:00, ‘Odai Riyad al-Louh (25), a Palestinian armed group member, was killed in an Israeli airstrike that targeted him in northern Nuseirat refugee camp.
On 12 May 2023:
At around 00:40, a Palestinian sustained injuries when IOF warplanes launched a missile at his family house of 4 floors in Tel al-Hawa neighborhood in southern Gaza City. The house also sustained partial damage.
It is worth noting that IOF announced that since the beginning of the military operation until 05:00 today, they have hit 215 targets in the Gaza Strip.
PCHR strongly condemns the ongoing Israeli offensive on the Gaza Strip and warns of any further losses of civilian life and damage to civilian property, urging the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) to take serious action into the situation of Palestine.
PCHR reiterates its call upon the High Contracting Parties to the Fourth Geneva Convention to fulfil their obligations as per Common Article 1 of the Convention, “undertake to respect and to ensure respect for the present Convention in all circumstances,” and their obligations under Article 146 of the same Conventions, i.e., to hold accountable persons accused of committing grave breaches of the Convention.
