8 Palestinians killed in Israeli drone attack in Gaza

At least eight Palestinians were killed on Tuesday in an Israeli drone attack on a police vehicle in the Gaza Strip, reported Xinhua, quoting Palestinian sources and eyewitnesses.

Eyewitnesses told Xinhua that a drone targeted at least one police car belonging to the Hamas-run Interior Ministry in the Al-Tuffah neighborhood, east of Gaza.

Medical sources told Xinhua that the strike killed eight people and injured dozens, all of whom have been transferred to a hospital in the east of Gaza.

There was no immediate comment from the Interior Ministry in Gaza or the Israeli army on the raid.

Meanwhile, Palestinian security sources said the Israeli army blew up with explosives a number of homes and residential buildings in the Nuseirat refugee camp in central Gaza.

They told Xinhua that fierce clashes and battles were taking place between armed Palestinian factions and Israeli forces on the northern outskirts of the camp, with artillery shells being fired towards homes and agricultural lands.

On April 11, the Israeli army announced the start of a surprise military operation in central Gaza as part of the ongoing war against Hamas.

In addition, the Civil Defense Service in Gaza said in a statement that its crews recovered the bodies of 15 Palestinians, including children, killed by the Israeli army during its operations in various areas in Khan Younis city, south of the strip.

The statement pointed out that all the bodies were found decomposed or decomposing as a result of remaining for a long period on the roads or under the rubble of destroyed homes.

On April 7, the Israeli army withdrew from Khan Younis after completing its military and ground operations there.

Israel has been launching a large-scale offensive against Hamas in Gaza to retaliate against a Hamas rampage through the southern Israeli border on Oct. 7, 2023, during which about 1,200 people were killed and more than 200 were taken hostage.