Israeli Military Kills Many Palestinians In Renewed Attack
Israeli fire killed five Palestinians, including two boys, in central and southern Gaza, local health authorities said, while the Israeli military said it had “eliminated” a Palestinian militant who posed a threat to its soldiers.
The latest incidents come amid continued tension between Israel and Hamas, who have traded blame over repeated breaches of the October ceasefire that followed two years of war that devastated Gaza and triggered a severe humanitarian crisis.
The two sides remain at odds over the next steps in the ceasefire process. According to Reuters, Palestinian medics said three people, including a 10-year-old boy, were killed by Israeli tank shelling east of Deir Al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip. In Gaza’s south, two others — a 13-year-old boy and a woman — were killed in two separate Israeli shooting incidents in eastern Khan Younis, according to health officials.
Residents said both incidents occurred in Palestinian-controlled areas. Under the ceasefire, Israeli forces partially withdrew from Gaza but still hold about 53% of the enclave. Residents told Reuters that Israeli troops have gradually expanded their presence in recent weeks, forcing further displacement of Palestinian families.
Earlier on Wednesday, the Israeli military said in a statement that its forces killed a “terrorist” who crossed into an area under their control and posed an imminent threat to soldiers operating there. Naija News House had earlier reported that Israeli forces raided Birzeit University in the occupied West Bank, wounding at least three Palestinian students with live ammunition, according to Palestinian officials.
The Palestinian Ministry of Education and Higher Education condemned the operation, describing it as a violation of international law. Officials said the incursion took place last Tuesday when Israeli soldiers stormed the campus, triggering chaos among thousands of students attending lectures and other academic activities.
The Palestinian Red Crescent Society said its medical teams treated three students for gunshot wounds to the legs and transferred them to hospital for further treatment. According to the Palestinian news agency WAFA, Israeli forces fired live ammunition, tear gas canisters and stun grenades as they entered the university, forcing students and staff to flee classrooms and administrative buildings. Dozens of students suffered tear gas inhalation, with some collapsing as panic spread across the campus. Birzeit University’s public relations officer, Nirdin Al Mimi, told WAFA that two additional students were injured after falling while trying to escape, while several others suffered suffocation caused by tear gas.
She said about 8,000 students were present on campus at the time, underscoring the scale of the disruption to academic life.
