Israel bombs Gaza as disagreements with US simmer over Palestinian statehood
- Israel vows to control security in the Gaza Strip after the war, Netanyahu says, amid Israel’s air and ground offensive which has killed 24,762 Palestinians in Gaza
- A UN official accuses Israel of mistreating Palestinian detainees, saying he’s met men in Gaza who describe being beaten and blindfolded. Some were released in nappies
Israel bombarded southern Gaza on Friday after it publicly sparred with its main ally the United States over the possibility of a Palestinian state, the creation of which Washington sees as the only pathway to a lasting peace.
Witnesses reported gunfire and air strikes early on Friday in Khan Yunis, the main city in the south of the Gaza Strip, where Israel says many members and leaders of the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas are hiding.
The Palestinian Red Crescent reported “intense” artillery fire near the Al-Amal hospital.
A total of 24,762 Palestinians have been killed and 62,108 have been injured in Israeli strikes on Gaza since October 7, the Gaza health ministry said on Friday.
Some 142 Palestinians were killed and 278 injured in the past 24 hours, the ministry added.
The Israeli military said its Givati Brigade was fighting as far south as its troops had reached so far in the campaign.