Israeli strike kills four, say Gaza civil defence, hospital
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GAZA CITY, Palestinian Territories – Gaza’s civil defence agency and a hospital reported that an Israeli strike on a group of civilians in the Palestinian territory on April 5 killed four people and wounded several others.
The attack took place before dawn in an eastern neighbourhood of Gaza City, the territory’s largest urban area, according to the agency, which operates as a rescue force under Hamas.
“An Israeli air strike before dawn killed four and wounded several,” the civil defence agency reported.
Gaza’s Al-Shifa Hospital confirmed the toll, saying the strike was carried out by an Israeli drone.
“Four martyrs and five wounded arrived at the hospital this morning after an Israeli drone fired two missiles at a group of civilians,” the hospital said in a statement.
Israel’s military said it had “identified a terrorist cell that operated adjacent to the troops, posing an immediate threat to them”.
“Following the identification, the IDF (Israel Defense Forces) precisely struck and eliminated the terrorist cell in order to remove the threat,” the military said, without specifying how many people were killed.
Despite a ceasefire being in effect, Israel has continued to launch strikes across Gaza, killing at least 715 people since the truce took hold on Oct 10, according to the territory’s Health Ministry, which also operates under Hamas authority.
The United Nations considers the ministry’s figures to be reliable.
Israel says five of its soldiers have been killed since the start of the truce.
Media restrictions and limited access in Gaza have prevented AFP from independently verifying casualty figures or freely covering the fighting.
Israel and Hamas continue to accuse each other of violating the ceasefire that largely halted two years of war in the territory. AFP
