Israel kills Palestinians in Gaza as UNRWA warns of aid blockade

Shafaq News/ Israeli warplanes pounded the Gaza Strip at dawn Friday, killing at least 17 Palestinians on the 32nd consecutive day of fighting.

According to Palestinian media outlets, the strikes hit multiple areas, including a school sheltering displaced families in Jabalia, where several people lost their lives.

The Gaza Health Ministry’s daily report on Thursday, the death toll from Israel’s offensive on the Gaza Strip since October 7, 2023, has risen to 51,065, with 116,505 others wounded.

خمسة شهداء وصلوا المشفى الأوروبي جراء قصف الاحتلال لمنزل ببلدة بني سهيلا شرق خانيونس. pic.twitter.com/L4YsuY6ZAC

— شبكة قدس الإخبارية (@qudsn) April 18, 2025

The renewed bombardment comes amid growing alarm over the humanitarian situation in the enclave, with the United Nations Agency for Palestinian Refugees (UNRWA) reporting that no aid or humanitarian supplies have entered Gaza since March 2.

“Approximately 69% of Gaza’s population is currently under active evacuation orders,” UNRWA said in a statement. The agency added that close to 420,000 people have been newly displaced since the collapse of the previous ceasefire, further straining limited resources and obstructing relief operations.

Our latest on the situation in📍#Gaza and the #WestBank:🔹Humanitarian aid and supplies have not entered the Gaza Strip since 2 March 2025, when the Israeli Authorities imposed a siege. This is already three times longer than the one enforced in October 2023 when the war… pic.twitter.com/SVZ9Sy7fev

— UNRWA (@UNRWA) April 18, 2025

Israel’s Defense Minister Yoav Gallant reiterated on Thursday that the government would not permit humanitarian aid into Gaza, describing the aid blockade as a key pressure tactic against the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas. In response, Hamas condemned the remarks as a “public admission of war crimes.”

Inside Israel, opposition to the war continues to mount with over 120,000 people having signed petitions calling for an end to the conflict and the return of Israeli hostages, including 10,000 signatories reportedly from within the military ranks, according to Israeli media.