20 Palestinians killed in Israeli strike on southern Gaza Strip

At least 20 Palestinians were killed in an Israeli strike targeting a shelter for displaced people west of Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip, according to Palestinian sources.

Local sources and eyewitnesses reported on Wednesday that Israeli warplanes targeted the shelter, which houses displaced people in the Mawasi area, with at least one missile.

Meanwhile, the Palestinian Civil Defence in Gaza issued a press statement saying its team is working to extinguish a fire that erupted in the tents following the Israeli strike, Xinhua news agency reported.

Medics told Xinhua that rescue teams recovered the bodies of at least 20 victims, including five children, and transported dozens of the wounded to hospital.

The Israeli army has not yet commented on the strike.

Israel has been launching a large-scale offensive against Hamas in the Gaza Strip to retaliate against a Hamas rampage through the southern Israeli border on 7 October 2023, during which about 1,200 people were killed and about 250 taken hostage.

The Palestinian death toll from ongoing Israeli attacks in Gaza has risen to 44,532, Gaza-based health authorities said in a statement on Wednesday.