Israeli Strike Kills Dozens in North Gaza Residential Block, US Calls Incident ‘Horrifying’

A Palestinian inspects the damage after an overnight Israeli air strike in Beit Lahia the northern Gaza Strip on October 27, 2024 amid the ongoing war in the Palestinian territory between Israel and Hamas. (AFP)
A Palestinian inspects the damage after an overnight Israeli air strike in Beit Lahia the northern Gaza Strip on October 27, 2024 amid the ongoing war in the Palestinian territory between Israel and Hamas. (AFP)
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Israeli Strike Kills Dozens in North Gaza Residential Block, US Calls Incident ‘Horrifying’

A Palestinian inspects the damage after an overnight Israeli air strike in Beit Lahia the northern Gaza Strip on October 27, 2024 amid the ongoing war in the Palestinian territory between Israel and Hamas. (AFP)
A Palestinian inspects the damage after an overnight Israeli air strike in Beit Lahia the northern Gaza Strip on October 27, 2024 amid the ongoing war in the Palestinian territory between Israel and Hamas. (AFP)

At least 93 Palestinians were killed or missing and dozens wounded in an Israeli strike on a residential building in the northern Gaza town of Beit Lahia on Tuesday, the Gaza health ministry said, and the US called the incident "horrifying".

Medics said at least 20 children were among the dead.

"A number of victims are still under the rubble and on the roads, and ambulance and civil defense crews cannot reach them," the territory's health ministry said in a statement.

Later on Tuesday, Ismail Al-Thawabta, director of the Gaza government media office, put the number of fatalities at 93.

There was no immediate Israeli comment. The Israeli military has frequently questioned figures on death toll published by the Hamas-run media office, saying they were often exaggerated.

Israel's main ally the United States said it was concerned by the high casualty toll, with State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller calling it a "horrifying incident with a horrifying result".

US officials have reached out to the Israeli government to ask what happened, Miller told reporters, adding he was aware of reports that many of the dead were children.

The UN Human Rights Office said it was "appalled" by one of the deadliest single attacks in nearly three months, calling for a prompt, transparent investigation into the circumstances.

Video footage obtained by Reuters showed several bodies wrapped in blankets on the ground outside a bombed four-storey building. More bodies and survivors were being retrieved from under the wreckage as neighbors rushed to help with rescue.

"There are tens of martyrs (dead) - tens of displaced people were living in this house. The house was bombed without prior warning. As you can see, martyrs are here and there, with body parts hanging on the walls," Ismail Ouaida, a witness who was helping to recover bodies, said in the video.

Later on Tuesday, Palestinian health officials said, several people were killed and wounded in an Israeli airstrike that hit three houses in Beit Lahia.

TRAPPED

On Monday, the Palestinian Civil Emergency Service said around 100,000 people were trapped in Jabalia, Beit Lahia and Beit Hanoun without medical or food supplies. Reuters could not verify the number independently.

The health ministry said on Tuesday those wounded in the Beit Lahia strike could not receive care as doctors had been forced to evacuate the nearby Kamal Adwan Hospital.

"Critical cases without intervention will succumb to their destiny and die," the ministry said in a statement.

Gaza's emergency service said its operations had come to a halt because of the three-week Israeli assault into northern Gaza. Israel says its campaign is to destroy Palestinian armed group Hamas, whose fighters had regrouped to the area in the year-long war.

Hamas' Oct. 7, 2023 attack on Israel killed 1,200 people and more than 250 hostages were captured and taken into Gaza, according to Israeli tallies.

The death toll from Israel's retaliatory air and ground onslaught in Gaza has exceeded 43,000, the Gaza health ministry said on Monday.

Gaza's war has kindled wider conflict in the Middle East, with Israel bombing Lebanon and sending forces into its south to disable Iran-backed Hezbollah, a Hamas ally.

Tuesday's strike came a day after Israel's parliament passed a law to ban the UN relief agency UNRWA from operating inside the country, alarming some of Israel's Western allies who fear it will worsen the already dire humanitarian situation in Gaza.

Israeli officials cited the involvement of a handful of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees' thousands of staffers in the Oct. 7, 2023 attack and a few staffers' membership in Hamas and other armed groups.

UNRWA head Philippe Lazzarini described the move as "collective punishment".

It was unclear yet how the decision will impact the lives of Palestinians, especially in the Gaza Strip, where the United Nations said most of its 2.3 million people have become internally displaced since the war broke out over a year ago.



Khiam: The Center of Arab-Israeli Conflict Faces ‘Fourth Wave of Destruction’

Intense Israeli airstrike targets Khiam, Lebanon (AFP)
Intense Israeli airstrike targets Khiam, Lebanon (AFP)
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Khiam: The Center of Arab-Israeli Conflict Faces ‘Fourth Wave of Destruction’

Intense Israeli airstrike targets Khiam, Lebanon (AFP)
Intense Israeli airstrike targets Khiam, Lebanon (AFP)

Residents of Khiam in southern Lebanon, hit by 12 airstrikes on Wednesday morning, see the attacks as yet another wave of destruction for a town scarred by conflict.
“Khiam has been devastated repeatedly, enduring pain with each blow over decades,” residents say. The town has already been destroyed three times since 1948 and faces new fears amid an intense military campaign and assault attempts.
Khiam, the largest town in the Marjayoun district, houses 35,000 people and over 5,000 homes.
Since 2006, it has expanded significantly, becoming a tourist spot with guesthouses known as “chalets.”
Since Oct. 2023, parts of these buildings, mainly on Khiam’s southern and eastern edges near Israel’s Metula settlement, have been damaged.
A Historic Staging Point Against Israel
Perched on high ground overlooking the Galilee, Khiam is open from the east, west, and south, providing a strategic link to the Golan Heights, Jordan, and northern Israel.
The town is known as the “last major Shia community” near Lebanon’s southern border, neighboring Christian, Druze, and Sunni areas.
This position made Khiam a focal point for Arab fighters against Israel since the 1940s and a regular flashpoint.
Historian Dr. Munzer Jaber says Khiam and other border villages have long faced displacement and Israeli bombardment.
In the 1940s, Khiam became a base for the Arab Salvation Army, which gathered volunteers from southern Lebanon and Syria, including units from Majdal Shams and Deir ez-Zor, led by Abdul Salam al-Ajili.
Since then, Khiam has seen frequent clashes with Israel due to its proximity to Metula, which Israel considers a strategic stronghold, Jaber noted to Asharq Al-Awsat.
Adding to the tensions, overlapping property claims among Syrians, Lebanese, Palestinians, and Jewish residents often lead to disputes.
The repeated destruction and conflict in Khiam have driven waves of migration to Beirut, especially after Palestine fell, cutting off jobs for southern Lebanese. Key markets in Marjayoun, Bint Jbeil, and Khiam shut down, leaving the local economy in decline.
Khiam lost its political and economic role until 1965, when the first Palestinian guerrilla operation against Israel shifted its focus to militant activity. Palestinian and leftist groups gained influence, sparking local divisions and causing many residents to leave as Palestinian forces moved in.
Jaber told Asharq Al-Awsat that this conflict created a strong pro-guerrilla movement among Khiam’s youth, leading to clashes with local leaders.
The growing Palestinian presence gave Israel a reason for airstrikes and security raids, which intensified in late 1973, pushing more residents to flee.
The Khiam Massacre
Israel intensified its military operations in Khiam over the years. In September 1977, Israeli forces entered the town, leading to fierce clashes with the pro-Israel militia led by Saad Haddad and Lebanese-Palestinian joint forces.
Israel officially occupied Khiam on March 14, 1978, during the first invasion of southern Lebanon, following three days of heavy bombardment.
Just a few days later, on March 17, Haddad’s militia carried out a massacre, killing 61 people, the youngest being just 60 years old. Residents reported widespread displacement and complete destruction of the town.
Ongoing Destruction
For five years, residents did not return, as Khiam became unlivable. After Israel's occupation, some residents slowly returned as a security zone was established.
The “South Lebanon Army,” led by Antoine Lahad, took over the notorious Khiam prison.
In the 1980s, Israel turned the town into a training ground for urban warfare, conducting drills that left it in a state of sustained destruction for 15 years, until Israel withdrew in 2000.
After the liberation of southern Lebanon, Khiam began to expand as residents returned, rebuilding homes and starting businesses.
However, around 40% of these new structures were destroyed during the 2006 war, marking the third wave of destruction.
The conflict saw Hezbollah destroy several Israeli Merkava tanks in the Khiam plains.
Once again, residents rebuilt, creating a more modern town with new mansions, schools, and healthcare facilities, making it a key hub in the region.
2023 Conflict
The situation in Khiam is once again dire as Hezbollah launched its war in support of Gaza on Oct. 8, 2023. Official sources report that by Sept. 23, more than 550 residential units had been destroyed.
Each day, Khiam faces artillery shelling and Israeli airstrikes, with the frequency of these attacks rising recently. Israeli forces have begun a ground operation to take control of the town and its elevated areas.