Israeli tanks, naval ships and airforce continue to bombard every part of the Gaza Strip, with ground troops invading from the north and east and airstrikes continuing to hit areas in southern Gaza, including Khan Younis and Rafah hit the hardest.Palestinian Ministry of Health spokesman Ashraf al-Qidra reported the following casualties on Friday evening:
Seven children were killed in three separate airstrikes in Gaza City, in the central district of Gaza.
An airstrike on Shawwa Square, in central Gaza City, killed:
1. Rizk Ahmad al-Hayk, 2
A separate airstrike in Hayy al-Tuffah neighborhood of Gaza City killed:
2. Sarah Muhammad Bustan, 13
And in eastern Gaza City, artillery shells from Israeli tanks killed two young brothers:
3. Imad Alwan and
4. Qassim Alwan
Airstrikes on the Abu Jarad family home in Beit Hanoun, in northern Gaza, resulted in the deaths of five members of the family, and the wounding of several others. Those killed were identified as:
5. Naim Mousa Abu Jarad, 23
6. Abed Mousa Abu Jarad, 30
7. Siham Mousa Abu Jarad, 26
8. Rija Aliyan Abu Jarad
9. Child, name not yet verified
Also in northern Gaza, an airstrike hit the village of Jahr al-Deek, killing:
10. Husam Musallam Abu Aisha, 26.
In Khan Younis, in the southern part of the Gaza Strip, Israeli airstrikes killed Palestinians, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry:
11. Muhammad Sa’ad Mahmoud Abu Sa’da
12. Ra’fat Mohammad al-Bahloul, 35
13. Wala’ al-Qaraa, 20
14. Abdullah Jamal al-Samiri, 17
15. Ahmed Hasan Saleh al-Ghalban, 23
16. Hamada Abdullah Mohammad al-Nashiti, 21
Also in Khan Younis, a Palestinian man died of wounds sustained in an earlier Israeli airstrike:
17. Yusif Ibrahim Hasan al-Astal, 23
Also in the southern part of the Gaza Strip, in Rafah, Israeli airstrikes in the eastern part of the city killed:
18. Hamza Mohammad Abu Hussein, 27
19. Saleh Zogheedi, 20
20. Ala’ Abu Shabat, 23
In a separate airstrike in Rafah, Israeli forces killed five Palestinians. They were identified as:
21. Ibrahim Daoud al-Balawy, 24
22. Abdul-Rahman Jamal al-Zamli, 22.
23. Ibrahim Ahmed ‘Abdeen, 42
24. Mustafa Abu Mour, 20
25. Khaled Abu Mour, 23
A Palestinian was killed on a road in western Gaza, identified as:
26. Mohammad ‘Awad Ma’tar, 37.
Hospitals in Gaza are overwhelmed with the number of wounded, most of whom remain in corridors and waiting rooms, since the hospitals are full. Kamel Zaqzuq, a doctor at Nasser hospital in Khan Yunis, said “The situation is very, very difficult…At night, it’s one constant emergency.’
Palestinians in the northern part of the Gaza Strip fled by the thousands to try to seek refuge in United Nations schools, while Israeli officials have vowed to ‘flatten’ the towns and villages of northern Gaza, whose residents were all told by Israeli officials to evacuate.
See: Israel Tells Thousands of Palestinians: Leave Your Homes, Or You Will Be Subjected To Bombing
Chris Gunness, a spokesperson of the United Nations, stated, “The number of people coming to UNRWA seeking sanctuary from the fighting in Gaza has nearly doubled today. It has risen from 22,000 to over 40,000”.
Related: More than 30,000 Gazans in UNRWA Shelters Since Thursday
In the previous large-scale invasion of Gaza, in 2009, Israeli forces attacked United Nations schools, including using white phosphorus weapons, which cause severe burns and are banned under international law for use in civilian areas.
See: Israel Drops Cancer-inducing Bombs on Gazans
An Israeli soldier, identified as Eitan Barak, was killed Friday by Palestinian fighters while Israeli troops invaded northern Gaza, according to the Israeli military. Military spokesman Brigadier General Motti told reporters, ‘We are using a very high level of fire power and artillery,’ adding, “A great number of soldiers are in action in the Gaza Strip, soldiers are overtaking their targets, tunnels, Hamas targets”.
But eyewitnesses, human rights groups and the United Nations all confirm that the Israeli military is overwhelmingly targeting civilians in its ground invasion, after airstrikes over the previous nine days killed 242 Palestinians and wounded over 1800 – at least 80% of whom are civilians, and the majority of whom are women and children.
Related link: List of Palestinians, Including Whole Families, Killed Since 7/8
