Israeli airstrikes on Rafah have reportedly killed 35 people and injured dozens more after Hamas launched rocket attacks towards Tel Aviv for the first time in months.
The strike in the southern Gaza city hit tents for displaced people, according to Palestinian medics. Footage from the scene shows heavy destruction.
However the Israeli military said its aircraft struck a “Hamas compound” in Rafah in which “significant Hamas terrorists were operating”.
The Hamas-run health ministry in Gaza said at least 35 people have died, “most” of them women and children.
In a statement, Hamas condemned the attack on what it claimed was “an area crowded with hundreds of thousands of displaced people”.
The strike took place in Tel Al Sultan neighbourhood of western Rafah, where thousands of people were taking shelter after many fled the eastern areas of the city where Israeli forces began a ground offensive over two weeks ago.
Burning wreckage remains after the reported Israeli strike on Rafah
A spokesperson with the Palestinian Red Crescent Society said the death toll was likely to increase as search and rescue efforts continued.
The society said the location had been designated by Israel as a “humanitarian area” and that people remain trapped amid the destruction.
The Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) said in its statement: “The strike was carried out against legitimate targets under international law, using through the use of precise munitions and on the basis of precise intelligence that indicated Hamas’ use of the area.
“The IDF is aware of reports indicating that as a result of the strike and fire that was ignited several civilians in the area were harmed. The incident is under review.”
On Friday, the International Court of Justice ordered Israel to halt its Rafah offensive, with Israel insisting it is key to its self-defence and goal of destroying Hamas entirely.
Hamas fires rockets towards Tel Aviv
The strike on Rafah comes after Hamas launched rocket attacks from Gaza towards Tel Aviv earlier on Sunday.
There were no immediate reports of casualties or damage in what appeared to be the first long-range rocket attack from Gaza since January, although Palestinian militants have continued to sporadically fire rockets and mortar rounds at communities along the Gaza border since then.
Hamas’s military wing claimed responsibility for the attack.
One of Israel’s Iron Dome defence missiles. File pic: AP
The Israeli military said eight projectiles crossed into Israel after being launched from the southern Gaza city of Rafah, where Israeli forces recently launched an incursion.
Israel’s Iron Dome defence system intercepted several of the missiles, it added.
Aid trucks enter Gaza via the Kerem Shalom crossing in southern Israel on Sunday. Pic: AP
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Earlier on Sunday, aid trucks entered Gaza via Israel’s Kerem Shalom crossing for the first time since a new aid agreement was struck.
Aid routes were rediverted after Egypt closed its side of the Rafah crossing over Israel’s decision to seize control of the Gaza side.
It is unclear whether humanitarian groups will be able to access incoming aid because of ongoing fighting in Rafah, however.
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Israeli protests over hostages
In Israel, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is facing growing pressure to make a deal with Hamas to free its remaining hostages after several bodies were recovered recently.
There were large protests in Tel Aviv on Saturday night, with scuffles breaking out between protesters and police.
A placard showing an Israeli hostage during protests inTel Aviv on Saturday. Pic: Reuters
Police and protesters in Tel Aviv on Saturday night. Pic: Reuters
Now in its eighth month, the Israel-Hamas war has killed almost 36,000 Palestinians, according to the Hamas-run Gaza health ministry.
The vast majority of Gaza’s two million-strong population has been displaced.
Hamas’s attack on Israel on 7 October last year killed 1,200 people, with militants taking some 250 hostages, around 100 of whom remain in captivity in Gaza.
