At least 51 people have been killed in Israeli airstrikes and ground operations targeting the Khan Yunis area in southern Gaza, according to the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry.
Tanks reportedly moved into parts of the southern city and surrounding areas on Tuesday night, as residents reported gunfire and heavy shelling.
One wounded villager who was taken to hospital told the BBC that without warning, “tanks rolled into the village.”
Separately, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) announced overnight attacks on Hamas targets at two schools in central and northern Gaza.
The Israel Defense Forces said the airstrike targeted Hamas members operating “on the premises, which was previously used as a school.” Palestinian media reported that at least nine civilians were killed at one school.
Israel continued its assault on the Gaza Strip on the same day, just hours after repelling a barrage of missiles from Iran and launching a ground invasion of Lebanon. The government described Tuesday’s invasion of Lebanon as a “limited” operation targeting Hezbollah strongholds.
The Israel Defense Forces has not yet commented on the attack in southern Gaza, which reportedly occurred in the early hours of Wednesday.
However, a man from the village of Kizan an-Najjar, southeast of Khan Younis, told BBC Arabic that some of his relatives had been killed in the attack.
“Tanks entered the area with quadcopters and directly targeted us,” he said from Nasser Hospital, where medical officials also gave an update on the death toll.
“We were in Kizan an-Najjar when suddenly shells from planes and tanks started raining down on us,” said another man who was at the hospital.
A third man told BBC Arabic: “There was no advance warning. After the rockets were fired from Lebanon, we saw complete destruction. I barely survived, but my daughter was injured. “My wife has a head injury that could lead to vision loss.”
He said Israeli forces had also “completely destroyed” the homes where displaced families had taken shelter.
The Health Ministry warned on Wednesday that another 82 people were injured in the strike, and the death toll could rise further.
On October 7 last year, Hamas militants attacked Israel, killing around 1,200 people and taking 251 hostages.
Israel responded with military operations in the Gaza Strip, which killed a total of 41,689 people, according to the Health Ministry.
Khan Yunis, Gaza’s second largest urban area, has been a direct target of the IDF several times in the past, including two large-scale ground operations in August and July 2024.
It was also heavily bombed in the first months of the war in December 2023.
