Five reported killed in overnight attacks by Israeli forces
Five people have been reported killed and many wounded in Israeli attacks overnight on Gaza, our colleagues at Al Jazeera Arabic have reported.
Three people, including a child, were killed in the bombing of house on al-Sahaba Street in Gaza City that left several wounded. A fourth person was killed and more were wounded in an attack on a building in the Daraj neighbourhood of eastern Gaza City. The fifth person was killed when Israeli warplanes struck an apartment building in the Nuseirat area of central Gaza, according to Al Jazeera Arabic.
Israeli military says 5 soldiers killed in north Gaza
All five were killed in fighting in the north of the Gaza Strip, the Israeli military said, and three other members of Battalion 202 were seriously injured.
The five – four of whom held the rank of sergeant and one a captain – were aged between 20 and 22 years of age and were all in the Parachute Brigade. All appear to have been killed in a single incident on Wednesday, according to the military’s post on social media.
As of Monday, the Israeli military reported that 272 soldiers had been killed and 1,674 injured in Gaza and along the border with the Palestinian territory since Israel began its ground operation against the enclave. The latest deaths reported will add to the overall number of Israelis killed in the war on Gaza.
Israeli soldiers were killed by ‘friendly fire’, army says
The Israeli army says “friendly fire” was behind the deaths. Asked to confirm media reports that the five deaths announced earlier in an official statement were caused by Israeli fire, a military spokesperson told AFP: “Yes."
“Five soldiers of the 202nd Paratrooper Battalion were killed last night in a mass casualty incident as a result of fire by our forces,” the Israeli military said in a statement, adding that seven other troops were wounded.
According to a preliminary investigation, two Israeli tanks in the area opened fire on a house used by the Israeli battalion’s deputy commander, the military said. “The shooting consisted of two tank shells,” it said. “From the initial investigation … it appears that the tank fighters identified a gun barrel coming out of one of the windows in the building, and directed each other to shoot at the building.”
Israeli ‘clearing’ operations in Jabalia target of mounting Palestinian attacks: Monitors
Palestinian fighters say they have carried out the largest number of attacks per day on Israeli forces operating in the Jabalia refugee camp since the start of the Gaza ground invasion, war monitors report.
Palestinian armed groups reported carrying out 34 attacks on Wednesday against Israeli forces who re-entered the northern Gaza camp on Saturday in a renewed push to “clear” resistance from northern parts of the Palestinian territory.
With Palestinian attacks average 30 daily, “this marks the highest rate of claimed attacks per day in Jabalia since the war began”, the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) and the Critical Threats Project (CTP) said in their latest battlefield report.
In southern Rafah city, Israeli forces discovered a Hamas facility containing “models of Israeli Merkava tanks and armoured personnel carriers”, which were used in the training of Palestinian fighters, the US-based think tanks report.
The report also notes that Israeli Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi has likened Israel’s “clearing” operations in Gaza to an unachievable, “Sisyphean task”.
A smoke plume rises during Israeli bombardment in Jabalia on May 14
Israeli jets continue bombardment in Jabalia
Israeli air strikes have continued to pound northern Gaza’s Jabalia, where Israeli soldiers have engaged in fierce gun battles with Palestinian fighters. A video posted on Instagram by Palestinian activist Mohamed Ahmed, and verified by Al Jazeera, shows smoke rising over targeted buildings in central Jabalia on Thursday morning.
Yesterday, Israeli tanks and troops pushed deep into densely populated neighbourhoods of Jabalia, encountering fierce resistance, as Israeli jets frequently raided parts of the city.
One Israeli strike hit a family home, killing at least four people in addition to causing injuries, according to Wafa news agency.
Israeli attack hits ambulance in Jabalia
An Israeli military attack has hit an ambulance from Jabalia’s al-Awda Hospital, injuring at least two paramedics, according to our colleagues on the ground. The report comes as heavy fighting continues in Jabalia, where tens of thousands of civilians have fled since Saturday.
Yesterday, as we reported, a Palestinian nurse was among those killed by gunfire in the city, adding to more than 500 health professionals killed in Gaza during the war.
Israeli attacks on Jabalia intensifying by the hour
Jabalia refugee camp is now the main battle zone, with confrontations raging and the Israeli military ramping up its attacks every single hour.
In the last couple of hours, we have recorded a clear surge in bombardment, not only on residential buildings, but also on the camp’s central market. The place is very densely populated.
The Israeli military has also targeted a kindergarten in the camp with an armed drone, injuring at least five Palestinians. Within these operations, the Israeli military has even targeted medics. Two medics hit by a drone attack have been wounded.
Four more killed in Jabalia
Israeli forces have now shelled a house in the al-Faluja area of Jabalia in northern Gaza, killing at least four Palestinians and wounding others, report our colleagues at Al Jazeera Arabic.
Israeli shelling has also targeted the al-Faluja cemetery within Jabalia refugee camp.
Smoke rises after Israeli strikes on Jibalia
Pregnant woman among those killed in Jabalia
A pregnant woman was one of four people killed when an Israeli strike hit a home in the al-Faluja area of Jabalia, reports the Wafa news agency. The three other victims were also civilians, according to the report.
Of the 35,272 people killed in Gaza during Israel’s war on the enclave since October, more than 9,500 are women, according to figures compiled by Gaza’s Health Ministry.
Five killed in Israeli strike on house in Khan Younis
Our colleagues at Al Jazeera Arabic are reporting that Israeli forces have shelled a family home in Khan Younis, killing at least five people. Khan Younis, previously decimated by Israeli attacks, is one of the areas Palestinians fleeing Rafah are now heading to seek shelter.
