At least 49 killed in Israeli strikes on northern Gaza

Three targets hit include two Hamas military infrastructure sites in Gaza city, Israeli military says

A Palestinian rescue worker carries wounded civilians at the site of Israeli strikes on houses in Gaza City on Saturday. Reuters

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Three Israeli air raids have killed at least 49 people in northern Gaza, two of which targeted Hamas "military infrastructure" in Gaza city, according to the Israeli military.

The death toll was reported by Palestinian officials, who said 24 people were killed in Saturday's air strikes on Al Shati camp, 18 in Al Tuffah neighbourhood and seven in the Zeitoun area.

“We are having difficulty reaching the victims of the bombing in Al Shati Camp, our capabilities do not match the scale of destruction," Civil Defence spokesman Mahmoud Bassal said.

“Our teams have recovered a number of martyrs and injured, mostly women and children, after the targeting of Al Shati Camp. We call for support to enable us to carry out our duties, we are facing difficulties in securing the necessary fuel to perform our work.” Mr Bassal added.

The Government Media Office in Gaza said the deaths in Al Shati resulted from “the targeting of seven homes" in the camp, on the coast west of Gaza city.

The Israeli military said on Twitter that "fighter jets struck two Hamas military infrastructure sites in the area of Gaza City", with army radio reporting that the target was a senior Hamas official.

The Israeli station Channel 12 said the official was Raed Saad, operations commander of the Qassam Brigades, Hamas's armed wing.

Israel's army radio reported earlier that an attempt to assassinate him in March failed.

Elsewhere in the Gaza Strip, the Israeli army struck areas in the southern Gaza city of Rafah on Saturday morning, killing at least two people and injuring 10 others, Wafa reported.

The injured were taken to Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis, the report said, adding that warplanes carried out air strikes in central Rafah.

In central Gaza, one person was killed and another injured in artillery shelling near the power station north of Nuseirat.

The latest attacks come a day after at least 25 Palestinians were killed and 50 others wounded in Al Mawasi humanitarian zone in western Rafah. Palestinians said a tank shell hit a tent housing displaced families.

The Israeli military said the incident was under review. "An initial inquiry conducted suggests that there is no indication that a strike was carried out by the IDF [Israel Defence Forces] in the humanitarian area in Al Mawasi," it said.

Witnesses told rescue workers about shelling in two places, said Ahmed Radwan, spokesman for the civil defence first responders in Rafah.

Wafa also reported on Saturday of Israeli gunfire in the western areas of Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip, including the Al Mawasi area, which left a number of people injured.

The attacks forced tens of families to flee from the West of Rafah and Khan Younis to central areas.

The Israeli military said on Saturday that troops were continuing "intelligence-based, targeted operations" in the Rafah area.

It said in a statement that over the past day, the troops dismantled "terrorist" infrastructure in the area and eliminated several militants in close-quarter encounters.

It added that troops are also operating in the central Gaza Strip, where several militants were killed and infrastructure dismantled.

At least 37,551 Palestinians have been killed and 85,911 others in Israel's war against Hamas militants in Gaza, according to the latest toll issued by the Gaza Health Ministry on Saturday.

West Bank violence

The Israeli army said on Saturday that an Israeli civilian was shot dead in the Palestinian town of Qalqilya in the occupied West Bank on Saturday.

The army said in a statement that troops were operating in the area and "IDF and Israel Police forces are investigating the circumstances of the incident".

Palestinian news agency Wafa reported that Israeli forces stormed the city and vehicles were operating there.

Violence in the West Bank, already on the rise before Hamas' October 7 assault on southern Israel that sparked the war in Gaza, has escalated, with stepped-up Israeli military raids, settler violence and Palestinian street attacks.

On Friday, Israeli forces shot and killed two Palestinian gunmen in an exchange of fire during an arrest raid in Qalqilya, Israel police said.

In Jenin, two men were injured by Israeli forces after a raid on the Al Jabariyat neighbourhood in the city.

Wafa said the men were shot as Israeli forces surrounded a house in the neighbourhood and ordered its occupants to leave the building. Medical teams were prevented from accessing the area, it said.