The Israeli army launched a series of early morning attacks across Gaza yesterday, killing at least 48 Palestinians, including five in the southern al-Mawasi area — a zone it had previously designated as "humanitarian."
Six aid seekers were among the Palestinians killed in the attacks, sources in hospitals in the territory told Al Jazeera. In Khan Younis, southern Gaza, a child was killed by Israeli attack, an emergency worker said.
In Sheikh Radwan, a neighbourhood in northwestern Gaza City that has come under sustained Israeli assault, Nihad Madoukh described recent terrifying attacks.
"They launched a firebelt attack only 150 metres (492 feet) away from us. They scorched the entire area. Not only that, but they fired from helicopters … very scary bombardments," he said.
Displaced Palestinian Ahmed Moqat said he had been continuously on the move in a bid to escape Israeli attacks.
The Israeli army said yesterday its so-called temporary daily "tactical pause" in Gaza, announced last month for humanitarian purposes, will no longer apply to Gaza City.
"In accordance with the assessment of the situation and the instructions of the political echelon, starting today [yesterday] at 10:00 am (07:00 GMT), the tactical-local ceasefire of military activity will not apply to the Gaza City area, which constitutes a dangerous combat zone," the military said in a statement on X.
The army added that it "will continue to support humanitarian efforts alongside ongoing maneuvering and offensive operations".
The World Health Organization (WHO) has run out of critical medical supplies in Gaza that it needs to treat a surge in cases of a rare paralysis-causing syndrome in the Palestinian enclave, the UN agency said yesterday.
There have been 94 documented cases of Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS) in Gaza since June, resulting in 10 deaths, although GBS had rarely been seen in the enclave before the Israeli offensive began nearly two years ago, it said.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres condemned the "endless catalogue of horrors" in Gaza after nearly two years of offensive, reports AFP.
In a separate development, Israeli forces have arrested nine Palestinians in dawn raids across the occupied West Bank, with a school principal among those detained, according to the Palestinian Prisoners' Media Office (ASRA).
In Salfit governorate, three men, including the head of the village council and the principal of a boys' school, were arrested in the town of Sarta, while another man was arrested in the town of Kafr ad-Dik.
The UN estimates that nearly a million people currently live in Gaza governorate, which includes Gaza City and its surroundings in the north of the territory.
AFP photos from the centre of the territory on Thursday showed lines of Palestinians fleeing south in vans and cars piled high with mattresses, chairs and bags.
Defence Minister Israel Katz vowed last week to destroy Gaza City if Hamas did not agree to end the war on Israel's terms.
