Israeli Strike on a Gaza Tent Camp Kills at Least 21 People, Hospital Says

 A Palestinian boy walks amongst rubble of destroyed buildings at a neighborhood in Khan Younis, Gaza Strip, Sunday, Dec. 1, 2024. (AP)
A Palestinian boy walks amongst rubble of destroyed buildings at a neighborhood in Khan Younis, Gaza Strip, Sunday, Dec. 1, 2024. (AP)
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Israeli Strike on a Gaza Tent Camp Kills at Least 21 People, Hospital Says

 A Palestinian boy walks amongst rubble of destroyed buildings at a neighborhood in Khan Younis, Gaza Strip, Sunday, Dec. 1, 2024. (AP)
A Palestinian boy walks amongst rubble of destroyed buildings at a neighborhood in Khan Younis, Gaza Strip, Sunday, Dec. 1, 2024. (AP)

A Palestinian health official said Wednesday that at least 21 people were killed in an Israeli strike on a camp housing displaced people in Gaza.

Atif Al-Hout, the director of Nasser Hospital in the southern city of Khan Younis said 28 people were wounded.

The Israeli military said it was looking into the reports but had no immediate comment.

The strike in the Muwasi area, a sprawling coastal camp housing hundreds of thousands of displaced people, near the southern city of Khan Younis, came after Israeli forces struck targets in other areas of the Palestinian enclave. Earlier strikes on central Gaza killed eight people, including four children.

Israel's war in Gaza began when Hamas-led attacked southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducting around 250 people. Some 100 hostages are still inside Gaza, at least a third of whom are believed to be dead.

Israel’s offensive has killed over 44,500 Palestinians in Gaza, mostly women and children, according to the Gaza Health Ministry, which does not say how many were combatants. The Israeli military says it has killed over 17,000 fighters, without providing evidence.



Israeli Official Says Hamas is Only Obstacle to Release of Hostages

Destroyed buildings stand inside the Gaza Strip, as seen from southern Israel, Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)
Destroyed buildings stand inside the Gaza Strip, as seen from southern Israel, Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)
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Israeli Official Says Hamas is Only Obstacle to Release of Hostages

Destroyed buildings stand inside the Gaza Strip, as seen from southern Israel, Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)
Destroyed buildings stand inside the Gaza Strip, as seen from southern Israel, Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)

Israel is fully committed to reaching an agreement to return its hostages from Gaza but faces obstruction from Hamas, a senior Israeli foreign ministry said on Tuesday.

"Hamas is the only obstacle to the release of the hostages," foreign ministry director general Eden Bar Tal told a briefing with reporters.

Both Israel and Hamas are under pressure from outgoing US President Joe Biden and President-elect Donald Trump to reach a deal before the Jan. 20 inauguration. But the sides have come close before, only to have talks collapse over various disagreements.

Israel says about 100 hostages remain in Gaza — at least a third of whom it believes were killed during the Oct. 7 attack or died in captivity.

The first batch of hostages to be released is expected to be made up mostly of women, older people and people with medical conditions, according to the Israeli, Egyptian and Hamas officials.