Israel’s military struck a house in northern Gaza where displaced families were sheltering on Sunday, killing at least 34 people, according to the Palestinian Civil Defense, the main emergency service in the territory.
Dr. Mohammed Al Moghayer, a spokesman for the group, said that 14 children were among the dead after the strike in the city of Jabaliya on Sunday morning. People were still trapped under the rubble, he added, warning that the death toll was likely to rise.
Wafa, the Palestinian Authority’s news agency, reported that the house, which was “crowded with residents and displaced people,” was destroyed. It said that a “large number” of wounded people were taken to the nearby Al-Ahli Arab Hospital in Gaza City.
In response to questions about the strike on Sunday, Israel’s military said that it had hit “a terrorist infrastructure site” in Jabaliya where militants who posed a threat to troops had been operating and that it had taken “numerous steps to mitigate the risk of harming civilians.” The military, which said that the details of the episode were under review, did not provide evidence for its assertions.
Ahmed Radwan lives next to the house that was struck in Jabaliya and said its residents were all civilians. He said he heard the explosion as he was about to begin his dawn prayer.
“It was terrifying,” he said in a voice message on Sunday, adding that his home was severely damaged by the strike.
