Israel pounds Gaza as Netanyahu intensifies campaign against Hamas

Shafaq News/ Israeli airstrikes have killed more than 90 Palestinians in Gaza over the past 48 hours, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, as Israel ramps up its offensive against Hamas to release hostages and lay down arms.

At least 15 people, including women and children, were killed overnight, some while sheltering in designated “humanitarian zones.” Medical teams reported that 11 people died in Khan Younis after an Israeli strike hit tents housing displaced families in Al-Mawasi. Four others were killed in Rafah, among them a mother and her daughter, according to staff at the European Hospital.

The renewed escalation follows orders from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to “increase pressure on Hamas” after the group rejected a recent Israeli proposal for a temporary truce. “We are in a war for our existence, and we will fight until victory, regardless of the cost,” Netanyahu said in a televised address late Saturday, reiterating that the war “will not end before Hamas is destroyed.”

Israel resumed its offensive on Gaza on March 18, breaking a ceasefire agreement brokered by Egypt, Qatar, and the United States in January. The conflict began on Oct. 7, 2023, following a surprise Hamas assault on southern Israel.

Palestinian officials say that since the resumption of hostilities, 1,783 people have been killed and 4,683 wounded, bringing the overall toll to 51,157 dead and 116,724 injured since October. More than two-thirds of the victims are women and children, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry.

The United Nations warned that children are now suffering from “severe malnutrition,” with many receiving just one meal a day. The UN agency for Palestinian refugees, UNRWA, said that no aid has entered Gaza since March 2, the longest pause since the siege began. “Nearly 69% of Gaza is under forced evacuation orders,” the agency noted, estimating that over 420,000 people have been newly displaced.