CAIRO/GAZA, Nov 20 – Israeli airstrikes in the southern Gaza Strip killed five people and injured 18 more in Khan Younis on Thursday, local health authorities reported, amid rising tensions between Hamas and Israel over alleged ceasefire violations.
Medics said one strike hit a house in Bani Suhaila, east of Khan Younis, killing three people, including a baby girl, and wounding 15. Another attack in nearby Abassan killed a man and injured three others. Israel confirmed the strikes but said it was not aware of casualties. Later, Nasser Hospital reported a fifth Palestinian killed by Israeli gunfire in Abassan.
The violence follows Israeli strikes across Gaza on Wednesday after Hamas militants fired on its troops, resulting in at least 25 deaths—the deadliest day since October 29, when over 100 Palestinians were killed. Hamas condemned the attacks as a dangerous escalation and called on Arab mediators, Turkey, and the U.S., which helped broker the truce, to intervene.
Hamas also accused Israel of shifting boundaries in Gaza, altering markings that define areas under Israeli control, which residents say expanded Israeli-controlled areas in eastern Gaza City’s Shejaia suburb by roughly 100 meters. Israel has not commented on the reports.
While the October 10 ceasefire has allowed some relief—enabling displaced Palestinians to return to their homes and increasing humanitarian aid—violence persists. Palestinian health authorities report that Israeli strikes have killed 312 people since the truce, while Israel says three soldiers have died.
The Gaza conflict began after Hamas-led militants killed 1,200 people and took 251 hostages in southern Israel on October 7, 2023. Israel’s retaliatory campaign has killed more than 69,000 Palestinians, most of them civilians, according to Gaza health officials.
As part of the ceasefire, Hamas released all 20 surviving hostages in exchange for nearly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners held by Israel. The truce also involved the return of the remains of hostages and militants on both sides, with exchanges ongoing.