Israeli strike at funeral in Gaza kills seven, injures 22

At least seven people were killed and 22 others injured in an Israeli strike during a funeral ceremony in the Gaza Strip, a local hospital said.

Al-Awda Hospital, located in the Nuseirat refugee camp, said the attack targeted the funeral of a Palestinian who had been killed earlier that day in another Israeli strike.

The Israeli military did not immediately comment on the incident.

In October, Israel and the militant group Hamas reached a ceasefire agreement aimed at ending the two-year war between the two sides.

Although the intensity of the fighting has declined since the agreement took effect, Gaza’s Health Ministry reports that at least 1,123 people have been killed in the territory during the ceasefire period.

Israel says its military operations are in response to attacks by Palestinian militants and ceasefire violations. The Israeli military has said that five Israeli soldiers have been killed since the start of the ceasefire.

The conflict erupted on October 7, 2023, when a Hamas-led attack in southern Israel killed around 1,200 people and led to the taking of 251 others as hostages.

According to Gaza’s Health Ministry, the Israeli offensive has caused the deaths of more than 73,000 Palestinians since it began, a figure that also includes people killed after the ceasefire.