Israeli strikes hit medical complex as nine killed across Gaza

• Israeli attacks across Gaza have killed at least nine Palestinians, including displaced civilians sheltering in tents

• Heavy rains have flooded at least 70,000 tents, affecting over 106,000 people, prompting the UN to appeal for urgent shelter supplies amid restrictions on aid deliveries

• Gaza's death toll has reached 74,653 since 7 October 2023, with 176,007 injured, while Italy has announced €5 million in emergency assistance

At least nine Palestinians have been killed in Israeli attacks across the Gaza Strip, as the United Nations appeals for urgent supplies of waterproof tents to protect hundreds of thousands of displaced people facing severe flooding following heavy rains.

According to Gaza civil defence spokesperson Mahmoud Basal, at least four Palestinians were killed in an Israeli air strike on the Nasser Medical Complex in western Khan Younis, southern Gaza, early Thursday, the Al Jazeera reported.

Other attacks reported across the enclave claimed additional lives. A 38-year-old Palestinian, Mohammed Salem al-Daash, was killed in an air strike in the al-Sabra neighbourhood, south of Gaza City, on Wednesday. Another Palestinian was shot dead by Israeli forces east of the al-Bureij refugee camp in central Gaza, while a drone strike killed another person in the al-Nasr neighbourhood, northwest of Gaza City.

At least two more Palestinians were killed and several others injured when an Israeli strike hit a tent sheltering displaced families in the Sheikh Radwan neighbourhood, north of Gaza City.

The latest attacks come as heavy rainfall has compounded Gaza's already dire humanitarian conditions, leaving thousands of displaced families without adequate shelter.

According to Gaza's Government Media Office, at least 70,000 tents were flooded during weekend rainfall. UNICEF estimates that the heavy rains have directly affected at least 106,000 people in recent days, with shelters submerged and sanitation facilities overflowing into displacement camps.

Humanitarian organisations have warned that they lack the resources and capacity to respond to the growing emergency, particularly as restrictions on aid deliveries continue to hamper the entry of essential supplies.

UN deputy spokesperson Farhan Haq said the organisation urgently needed permission from Israeli authorities to bring additional tents into Gaza, the Al Jazeera reported.

"Ultimately, we need the Israeli authorities to cooperate with giving the permissions so that we can bring those tents in," Haq told reporters, stressing that funding alone would not be enough without the necessary authorisations.

UN under-secretary-general for Humanitarian Affairs Tom Fletcher also criticised delays in delivering winter assistance. He said several countries supporting humanitarian operations had indicated that progress would be difficult until after Israel's elections and the formation of a new government.

Rejecting the justification, Fletcher said delays, restrictions and funding cuts were having serious consequences for civilians and were unacceptable under international law.

Meanwhile, Italy has announced a new emergency assistance package worth five million euros (approximately $5.5 million) to support relief efforts in Gaza.

Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said the initiative was launched on Wednesday to provide immediate assistance to Palestinians affected by the worsening humanitarian crisis and widespread flooding.

The death toll from Israel's war on Gaza has reached 74,653 Palestinians since 7 October 2023, according to medical sources cited by the Palestinian news agency WAFA. A further 176,007 people have been injured.

Since the ceasefire agreement took effect on 11 October 2025, Israeli attacks have killed another 1,622 Palestinians and wounded 5,878, according to the figures cited in the report.

With continued attacks, severe weather and restrictions on humanitarian assistance, displaced Palestinians face an increasingly desperate struggle for shelter, food, clean water and basic survival.