16 Palestinians killed in Israeli airstrike in Gaza

At least 16 Palestinians were killed in an Israeli airstrike on two homes in Nuseirat refugee camp in the central Gaza Strip, reported Xinhua, quoting Palestinian sources on Thursday.

Local sources and eyewitnesses told Xinhua that civil defense and medical teams swiftly arrived at the scene to recover the dead and injured, transporting them to nearby hospitals.

Al-Awda Hospital in the camp reported in a press statement that it had received 16 bodies and more than 30 people with varying degrees of injuries, including a medic and two journalists.

The Israeli army has not commented on the incident yet.

Israel has been launching a large-scale offensive against Hamas in the Gaza Strip to retaliate against a Hamas rampage through the southern Israeli border on Oct. 7, 2023, during which about 1,200 people were killed and about 250 taken hostage.

The Palestinian death toll from ongoing Israeli attacks in the Gaza Strip has risen to 43,204, Gaza-based health authorities said in a statement on Thursday.