The Gaza Civil Emergency Service reported that its teams have retrieved around 60 bodies of Palestinians killed by Israel over the past week from the Tel Al-Hawa area and the outskirts of the Sabra neighborhood in Gaza City. This follows an overnight withdrawal of Israeli forces from parts of Gaza City after a week-long offensive, which encountered resistance from Hamas, resulting in numerous casualties and the destruction of homes.
Although tanks have withdrawn from certain areas, Israeli snipers and tanks continue to control some high ground, according to residents and rescue teams, who have cautioned residents against attempting to return.
Gaza Strip Civil Defense spokesperson Mahmoud Basal reported that bodies were scattered in the streets. They discovered dismembered bodies and bodies of entire families. In one home, they found the charred remains of an entire family.
Israel’s military reported discovering drones and other weaponry in what it described as a Hamas combat complex inside the former UNRWA headquarters in Gaza City. They stated that civilians had been evacuated from the area before the attack.
“The troops engaged in close-quarters combat with terrorist cells that had fortified themselves inside the UNRWA compound,” it said, adding that it had also found an important Hamas tunnel nearby and weapons production under a university building.
According to Israeli reports, Hamas militants killed 1,200 people and captured over 250 hostages on October 7. Medical authorities in Gaza report that since then, Israeli forces have killed more than 38,000 Palestinians.
(With Reuters inputs)