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Israel pressed a large-scale ground offensive on Friday, as its assault on Gaza entered its 11th day. At the time of writing, the death toll of Palestinians stood at 271, according to numbers given out by medical officials. An Israeli soldier was killed when the offensive started, raising the death toll of Israelis to two, the Israeli army said.
Three Palestinians were killed by fresh Israeli bombings in southern and central Gaza on Friday afternoon, medical officials said. Two people died in the city of Khan Yunis while a third was killed in central Nusseirat, Ashraf al-Qudra, spokesman for the emergency services, said. The body of a man who had been killed in an earlier shelling was recovered in Khan Yunis, Qudra added.
On Friday morning, medics had found a man’s body in Gaza City, probably killed in an earlier strike, al-Qudra said. Earlier in the day, two men from the same family were killed in the city of Khan Yunis. Four other members of the same family were killed in a different strike in the city, al-Qudra added. Three others were also killed in Khan Yunis by tank fire.
Two people were killed in the town of Beit Hanun, which was preceded by the deaths of two others caused by tank fire. One person was killed in the district of Shejaiya in the east of Gaza City, al-Qudra said. Five others, including a five-month old baby, were killed in Israeli fire in the city of Rafah.
According to the Palestinian Center for Human Rights, over 80% of the victims are civilians. In addition to the 271 deaths, 1,920 Palestinians have been wounded in the onslaught since the Operation Protective Edge began on July 8th.
On Tuesday, Egypt had proposed a ceasefire without discussing terms with Hamas; Hamas promptly rejected what it deemed as an unfair deal, which did not consider any of the concessions it has been asking for – lifting of Israeli blockade on Gaza, opening the Rafah crossing with Egypt and release of Palestinian prisoners who had been re-arrested by Israeli authorities after being freed in exchange for the release of abducted soldier Gilad Shalit.
Although there have been signs of a truce being agreed to by the parties involved in the past few days, Hamas has repeatedly said that it will only agree to a deal in which all of its concessions are met.
