On the fifth day since Israel resumed its extensive bombing and shelling of various parts of the devastated Gaza Strip, the Israeli army fired barrages of missiles and shells, resulting in dozens of deaths and injuries, including many children and women.
Following the first night of bombing on Tuesday, in which 560 people were killed – including 174 children, bombed and burned alive in makeshift tent camps, at least 200 more people have been killed – the exact toll is unclear, as many bodies are buried under the rubble and communication from inside Gaza to the outside world is extremely difficult.
Since October 7, 2023, the Israeli army killed over 560 Palestinian athletes, among them, 250 were part of the Palestinian football community across various categories, 259 were members of sports academies and organizations under the Palestinian Olympic Committee, and 51 belonged to the Palestinian Scouts and Guides.
A young girl was killed, and several Palestinians were injured on Saturday evening in an Israeli airstrike east of Khan Younis, in the southern Gaza Strip, after the army fired a missiles a house in the Al-Fokhari area east of Khan Younis, resulting in the death of Lillian Jihad Abu Daqqa and injuries to several others.
Additionally, several individuals were wounded in an airstrike targeting the vicinity of the European Gaza Hospital, east of Khan Younis.
Update, 17:48:
Four Palestinians were killed and others injured on Saturday evening when the Israeli occupation forces bombed a group of citizens west of Rafah city, south of the Gaza Strip.
Local sources reported that an Israeli drone bombed a group of civilians in the Tel al-Sultan neighborhood west of Rafah, killing four of them and wounding several others.
Two Palestinians were killed in an Israeli airstrike near the Star factory in the Zeitoun neighborhood, southeast of Gaza City.
Update, 14:39: Three Palestinians were killed and others injured on Saturday in Israeli shelling of Umm al-Nasr village and Beit Lahia town, north of the Gaza Strip.
Local sources reported that Israeli drones bombed Beit Lahia and Umm al-Nasr in the northern Gaza Strip, killing three civilians and wounding others.
A number of injured civilians arrived at the Indonesian Hospital after the occupation forces fired a shell at a group of citizens in the Beit Hanoun area, north of the Gaza Strip.
The Israeli occupation artillery shelled the vicinity of the Palestine site opposite Al-Nada Towers in the northern Gaza Strip, and Al-Shaboura camp in the center of Rafah city in the south.
Update, 13:41: At least two Palestinians were killed and many others injured when the Israeli army fired a shell at the Al-Mughraqa area in central Gaza.
Several Palestinians were also injured when an Israeli drone fired live rounds at the tents of displaced families near Beit Lahia Club in Beit Lahia, northern Gaza.
Medical sources reported that Israel has killed at least 634 Palestinians and injured hundreds since March 18.
They added that, over the past 48 hours, the bodies of 130 Palestinians were recovered from the rubble, and 263 wounded individuals were transported to medical centers.
Update, 11:56: Palestinian medics found the corpses of nine Palestinians, including five children and one women, under the rubble of a bombarded home for the Al-Mashharawi family, in the Tuffah neighborhood, east of Gaza city, and moved them to the Baptist hospital in the city.
A missile struck the home of the Al-Masharawi family in Gaza City’s Tuffah neighborhood, killing five Palestinians, including four children, and injuring many others.
Another missile targeted a nearby home, killing Khaled Al-Banna, his wife, their son Ali, and their daughter Zeinab.
In the Nuseirat refugee camp in central Gaza, the army fired multiple missiles and artillery shells at several homes. Additional strikes targeted areas north of Nuseirat and Al-Mughraqa village.
Israel’s renewed air attacks on Gaza this week have killed at least 200 Palestinian children in the besieged enclave. Here are some of their stories ⤵️ pic.twitter.com/n8ySXGEsV5
— Al Jazeera English (@AJEnglish) March 22, 2025
In Khan Younis, located in southern Gaza, two women were killed, and several Palestinians were injured when their homes were bombarded east of the city.
This attack occurred shortly after the army ordered residents to evacuate the area. A missile also struck a five-story house in Khan Younis, causing significant damage to surrounding homes.
Furthermore, airstrikes on Hamad City, north of Khan Younis, resulted in numerous casualties.
In Jabalia, northern Gaza, at least one Palestinian was killed, and several others were injured in bombings targeting homes. The Jabalia refugee camp also came under heavy bombardment, leaving many wounded.
For the 2nd day, israeli massacres against innocent civilians continue in north Gaza: there’s no press here to report it, says Dr @Hussam63927481 https://t.co/viziQMQhD1
— Sarah Wilkinson (@swilkinsonbc) March 21, 2025
The ongoing Israeli attacks on Beit Lahia in northern Gaza have caused widespread casualties, forcing thousands of Palestinians to flee in search of shelter within the devastated Gaza Strip.
The Israeli army has maintained its closure of Gaza’s border terminals, blocking the entry of humanitarian and medical supplies.
The United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) has warned that Gaza could run out of wheat within six days.
Israeli daily Haaretz quoted security sources indicating that the army is preparing for a large-scale offensive across the Gaza Strip, with ceasefire negotiations yielding no progress.
According to these sources, Israel is planning to fully control the Gaza Strip, with escalation likely to increase as far-right coalition partners in Prime Minister Netanyahu’s government push for an expanded offensive.
Meanwhile, Al-Jazeera reported that the Israeli army continues to bomb various parts of Gaza City. In response, Al-Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of Hamas, retaliated by firing shells at Ashkelon.
On Friday, the Israeli occupation army issued new “evacuation orders” to Palestinian families in northern Gaza, demanding their immediate relocation to the southern part of the devastated coastal region.
In related news, the Acting Director of UNRWA Affairs in Gaza, Sam Rose, highlighted that no aid has entered the Gaza Strip since the beginning of this month, March 2025, marking the longest such period since October 2023.
Israeli occupation forces advanced on Friday morning into the western areas of Beit Lahia city, north of the Gaza Strip, amidst gunfire and artillery shelling of the area. The city of Beit Lahia is almost completely rubble after sixteen straight months of Israeli bombardment.
But after breaking the ceasefire agreement three days ago, Israeli forces returned to their relentless bombardment and now ground invasion to continue their stated objective of ethnically cleansing Gaza of its 2.4 million Palestinian residents.
Since Tuesday’s Israeli resumption of Gaza bombing, the Israeli strikes have killed over 634 lives and injured over a thousand individuals, 70% of whom are children, women, or the elderly (Saturday not included).
The number of slain Palestinians in the Gaza Strip has surpassed 49,747, including more than 17,881 children and 12,298 women, in addition to more than 113,213 wounded, largely children, women and elderly.
