Gaza Civil Defense Says Israeli Strikes Kill 15

A man carries the body of a child during the funeral of Palestinians killed overnight in Israeli attacks on a tent and on people seeking aid, according to Gaza's health ministry, at Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis, southern Gaza Strip, July 4, 2025. REUTERS/Hatem Khaled
A man carries the body of a child during the funeral of Palestinians killed overnight in Israeli attacks on a tent and on people seeking aid, according to Gaza's health ministry, at Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis, southern Gaza Strip, July 4, 2025. REUTERS/Hatem Khaled
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Gaza Civil Defense Says Israeli Strikes Kill 15

A man carries the body of a child during the funeral of Palestinians killed overnight in Israeli attacks on a tent and on people seeking aid, according to Gaza's health ministry, at Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis, southern Gaza Strip, July 4, 2025. REUTERS/Hatem Khaled
A man carries the body of a child during the funeral of Palestinians killed overnight in Israeli attacks on a tent and on people seeking aid, according to Gaza's health ministry, at Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis, southern Gaza Strip, July 4, 2025. REUTERS/Hatem Khaled

Gaza's civil defense agency said Friday that overnight Israeli strikes killed at least 15 people, after nearly 21 months of war in the Palestinian territory.

Israel has recently expanded its military operations in the Gaza Strip, where the war has created dire humanitarian conditions for the territory's population of more than two million.

Gaza civil defense official Mohammad al-Mughayyir told AFP that seven people, including a child, were killed in an Israeli air strike on displaced people's tents near the southern Gaza city of Khan Yunis.

Mughayyir said eight more people were killed in two other strikes on tent encampments on the coast of Khan Yunis, including one that killed two children early Friday.

Contacted by AFP, the Israeli military said it could not comment on specific attacks without precise coordinates, but noted it was "operating to dismantle Hamas military capabilities".

On Thursday, the agency reported that 73 people were killed in Israeli strikes.

Media restrictions in Gaza and difficulties in accessing many areas mean AFP is unable to independently verify the tolls and details provided by the civil defense.

Israel's military campaign has killed at least 57,130 people in Gaza, also mostly civilians, according to the Hamas-run territory's health ministry.



Syrian Presidency Pledges Specialized Force to Halt Clashes in Sweida

Smoke rises as a damaged car remains along a street, as Sweida province has been engulfed by nearly a week of violence, at Sweida governorate, Syria, July 18, 2025. REUTERS/Karam al-Masri
Smoke rises as a damaged car remains along a street, as Sweida province has been engulfed by nearly a week of violence, at Sweida governorate, Syria, July 18, 2025. REUTERS/Karam al-Masri
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Syrian Presidency Pledges Specialized Force to Halt Clashes in Sweida

Smoke rises as a damaged car remains along a street, as Sweida province has been engulfed by nearly a week of violence, at Sweida governorate, Syria, July 18, 2025. REUTERS/Karam al-Masri
Smoke rises as a damaged car remains along a street, as Sweida province has been engulfed by nearly a week of violence, at Sweida governorate, Syria, July 18, 2025. REUTERS/Karam al-Masri

Syria's presidency on Friday pledged to send forces to halt the clashes between Bedouin tribal factions and Druze fighters in Sweida, in the south of the country, and urged "restraint.”

In a statement, the presidency urged "all parties to exercise restraint and prioritize reason,” adding: "The relevant authorities are working on dispatching a specialized force to break up the clashes and resolve the conflict on the ground."

Damascus earlier this week dispatched government troops to quell the fighting, but they were hit by Israeli strikes before withdrawing under a truce agreed on Wednesday.

Israel had repeatedly said it would not allow Syrian troops to deploy to the country's south, but on Friday it said it would grant them a brief window to end renewed clashes there.

The Syrian Network for Human Rights said it had documented 321 deaths in fighting since Sunday, among them medical personnel, women and children.

Syria's minister for emergencies said more than 500 wounded had been treated and hundreds of families had been evacuated out of the city.