Israeli shelling kills scores in Gaza as large-scale military onslaught launched in West Bank

Israeli shelling killed several Palestinians overnight and early on Tuesday, as the UN’s Middle East peace envoy described conditions in the enclave as a “nightmare” and “immeasurable”.

At least two Palestinians were killed in Israeli attacks on north Gaza, the Palestinian Information Centre reported, identifying those killed as Mahmoud Salim Al-Madhoun and Ibrahim Muhammad Al-Shafii.

The centre also added that the body of a man named Baraa Ayman Abu Asi was found east of Khan Younis after he was reported missing in January.

Two Palestinians were also killed in central Gaza, with one of them being an infant, Al-Jazeera reported, giving an initial toll. The Israeli shelling targeted an area near the Nuseirat camp.

Rescue crews from the Palestine Red Crescent Society shared video footage of their team on Tuesday trying to rescue people and retrieve bodies in the aftermath of an Israeli attack on Monday which killed at least seven in western Gaza City.

The strike targeted the home of Abu Rayala, where many people were sheltering from Israeli bombardment. Video footage showed the emergency crews carrying wounded children from mounds of rubble.

The killings come after the UN’s Middle East peace envoy, Tor Wennesland, told the UN Security Council on Monday that the humanitarian situation in Gaza remains “catastrophic”.

Wennesland added that the current conditions in the enclave were “among the worst we’ve seen during the entire war and are not set to improve”, noting that the war has now spread to include Lebanon and retaliatory attacks from Iran.

West Bank offensive

Meanwhile, Israeli forces launched a large-scale military offensive on the occupied West Bank city of Jenin killing at least three, while also raiding and storming other cities, including Bethlehem.

According to the Wafa news agency, Israeli forces have been raiding parts of Jenin since Monday evening, with local sources saying military vehicles entered the city from the Jalameh military checkpoint.

Israeli forces went into several neighbourhoods, raiding and searching peoples’ homes while bulldozers tore down infrastructure, including key roads.

Wafa reported that armed confrontations later broke out in the city’s refugee camp, while schools implemented remote learning due to the ongoing aggression.

According to the Times of Israel, “Undercover Border Police officers surrounded a building in Qabatiya where several wanted Palestinians were holed up and carried out a tactic known as “pressure cooker,” which involves escalating the volume of fire against a building to flush suspects out”.

An Israeli military source said the military onslaught is set to continue in the coming hours.

Israeli forces also killed a Palestinian man east of Nablus, the Palestinian ministry of health announced, identifying him as Noor Ahmed Mustafa Arafat.

The 18-year-old was shot with live ammunition in the chest, shoulder and abdomen following confrontations with armed forces.

Israel’s war on Gaza has killed at least 43,922 Palestinians and wounded 103,898 since 7 October 2023. In the occupied West Bank, at least 784 Palestinians have been killed and more than 6,250 wounded in the same time frame.