TRANSCRIPT:
Palestinian health officials say an Israeli airstrike on a tent camp sheltering displaced families in Khan Younis, southern Gaza, have killed at least 10 people.
Footage from the scene shows flames engulfing tents as civil defence crews and locals attempted to rescue the wounded.
But medics reported that Israeli strikes across the Gaza Strip killed at least 35 people that day, one airstrike killing 10 people, including Fatema Hassouna, a prominent writer and photographer known for documenting the war.
Others died in separate attacks elsewhere in the territory.
Among the wounded was Hisham al-Hassi, hit in Jabaliya.
"We were sleeping peacefully in our home, nothing with us, nothing. Suddenly, a missile destroyed everything, as you can see. Three children were martyred—the eldest was about 10 years old, the second was five, and the third, Muhannad al-Hassi, was around three. He was unrecognisable; we found him in the neighbour's house."
The total death toll since the conflict began on 7 October 2023 now stands at over 51,000 [[51,025]], with more than 116,000 injured.
The Health Ministry says more than half of those killed have been women and children, though it does not differentiate between combatants and civilians.
On Sunday [[13 April]] an Israeli airstrike hit Al-Ahli Arab Hospital in Gaza City, the last fully operational hospital in the north.
The facility has now shut down after sustaining severe damage for the third time since the war began.
Palestinian Health Ministry official Munir Al-Barsh has condemned the strike.
"Israel's direct attack on the hospital completely violated international law and ethical standards. This hospital is world-renowned, with doctors, displaced people, journalists, and even foreign delegations stationed here, yet the Israeli army insisted on bombing this area."
Among the injured is Muhammad Abu Nasser, a patient still recovering from earlier injuries.
He has recalled the panic inside the hospital when the blast hit.
"I was in the surgical ward when the attack occurred. The blast left patients, doctors, and everyone in the hospital terrified. The hospital should have been a safe haven, but now almost no hospital in Gaza is fully operational. Where can we go now?"
Local medical teams are trying to relocate critical patients, but with few functioning hospitals left, many remain in limbo.
The I-D-F said it targeted the hospital because it contained what it says was a command and control centre used by Hamas - but Hamas has repeatedly denied it uses hospitals as operation centres.
Since resuming operations in March after a temporary truce, Israeli forces have taken control of more than 30 per cent of the territory.
Israel’s Defence Minister Israel Katz has now confirmed that Israeli troops will remain in so-called security buffer zones in Gaza, Lebanon, and parts of Syria for the foreseeable future, even if a ceasefire is reached.
Meanwhile in Israel, a rare glimpse of hope came this week when Rachel Dancyg was reunited with her dog Billie, a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel she lost during the Hamas attack on her home in Nir Oz on the 7th of October 2023.
Rachel’s ex-husband and brother were killed in the attack, and Billie had been missing ever since, until a soldier returning from Gaza found her in Rafah and insisted on bringing her back.
“He (Israeli soldier who found Billie) said - she is coming with me to Israel - that’s what he decided. And the others told him - let her go - and he replied - no, she is coming with me. He insisted. He went to a veterinarian. He came back to Israel a few days ago, he (the soldier) was in Gaza for 300 days, in Rafah. He returned from Rafah. So, he took her to a veterinarian, the veterinarian checked and saw there is a chip which says she is mine.“
The reunion brought some comfort, but Rachel says the war is far from over, especially for the families of those still held hostage in Gaza.
"This is closure. We received Alex (Dancyg) in a coffin, we received Itzik (Elgarat) in a coffin, and now Billie has returned. These are the three things I personally wanted to get back. But I am very worried about the hostages. Very worried. About lot of our hostages are there (in Gaza). I can’t get out of this trauma as long as they are there."
