Nine civilians martyred in Israeli shelling of the cities of Rafah and Khan Yunis in Gaza

Occupied Al-Quds, (ST) –  Nine civilians, including three children, were martyred today in Israeli bombings targeting the towns of Khan Yunis and Rafah, in the southern war-torn Gaza Strip.

In Khan Yunis, five civilians, including three children, were killed after the occupation shelled a gathering of civilians in the Batn al-Saleem area. The occupation fighter helicopters also attacked the southeastern parts of the city.

In the city of Rafah, two civil defense crews were killed by the occupation, bringing the total number of civil defense members killed since the outbreak of the aggression on the Gaza Strip on October 7, 2023, to 82.

Two civilians were also killed by the occupation bombings north of Rafah and the Tel al-Sultan neighborhood west of the city.

The occupation also launched an air airstrike on the town of Beit Hanoun in the northern Gaza Strip.

The Israeli occupation’s aggression on Gaza Strip by land, sea and air since October 7, 2023, has so far resulted in the killing of 39965 civilians and the injury of 92294 others.

Thousands of victims are still buried under rubble and scattered on the roads and cannot be reached by civil defense and rescue crews.

Israeli occupation forces approve plan to expand colonial outpost in Bethlehem

On the other hand, in Bethlehem, the Israeli occupation authorities have approved the seizure of over 338 dunums of land in the city of Bethlehem for the benefit of the illegal colony of Nahal Helitz.

Local sources said that this step came within the framework of the occupation state’s efforts to settle the situation or legalize the colonial outpost that was established on the lands of the Bethlehem, specifically the lands of Beit Jala and Battir under the name Nahal Helitz.

This colony was among the five colonies that the occupation cabinet approved last June to legalize as part of its response to the wave of international recognition of the Palestinian state.

Source: Wafa News Agency

Edited by: Nada Haj Khidr