Gaza/Cairo/Jerusalem, Dec 5: Israeli strikes killed seven Palestinians, including two children, across the Gaza Strip, officials said on Wednesday, in what Palestinian authorities described as a fresh breach of the fragile U.S.-brokered ceasefire.
Civil defence officials in Gaza said two people were shot dead in Gaza City’s Zeitoun district, while five others were killed in the southern coastal area of al-Mawasi when missiles hit a tent camp sheltering displaced families. Doctors at the Kuwaiti Hospital confirmed the children killed were aged eight and ten. More than 30 others were wounded, many with severe burns.
The Israeli military said the deaths followed an attack by Hamas fighters that wounded four Israeli soldiers near Rafah, on Gaza’s border with Egypt. Hamas condemned the strikes as a “war crime” and accused Israel of repeatedly violating the truce. Gaza authorities say Israel has breached the ceasefire at least 591 times since Oct. 10, causing 360 deaths and nearly 1,000 injuries.
In a separate development, Israel said Palestinian armed groups had handed over, via the International Committee of the Red Cross, the remains of a person who may be one of two captives still missing in Gaza. Earlier forensic tests showed partial remains transferred the previous day did not match either captive. Since the ceasefire began, Hamas has released 20 living captives and 26 bodies, while Israel has freed roughly 2,000 Palestinian detainees.
The renewed violence comes amid growing tensions over the reopening of the Rafah crossing. Israel’s COGAT authority said Rafah would reopen “exclusively” for Gaza residents seeking to leave for Egypt, pending security approval. The announcement raised fears among Palestinians of permanent displacement — a position openly backed by some far-right ministers in Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government.
Egypt rejected any one-way reopening, insisting the crossing must function in both directions under the ceasefire framework and denying coordination with Israel. Cairo said it remains bound by UN Security Council Resolution 2803, which calls for opening all crossings and envisions eventual joint management of border points with the Palestinian Authority and the European Union.
The United Nations urged a full reopening of Rafah for humanitarian aid, relief workers and voluntary civilian movement. “If Palestinians wish to leave, they must be able to do so freely. And if they wish to return, they must be able to return,” UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said.
Former U.S. President Donald Trump said the ceasefire was “going along well” and that the next stage of his 20-point peace plan would begin “very soon”, even as Hamas rejects conditions that require it to disarm.
The humanitarian crisis remains severe. The World Health Organisation estimates more than 8,000 critically ill or injured Palestinians have been evacuated since October 2023, but more than 16,500 still need urgent medical transfer. Doctors Without Borders said the demand for evacuation remains “really huge”.
Israel’s offensive in Gaza has killed at least 70,117 Palestinians and wounded 170,999 since October 2023, according to Gaza health authorities. In Israel, 1,139 people were killed and around 200 taken captive during the Hamas-led Oct. 7 attack.
