Israel-Hamas war: At least 17 Palestinians killed in Israeli strike on Gaza refugee camp

Israel on Tuesday (Jun 18) conducted air strikes overnight on homes at a refugee camp in the central Gaza Strip, killing at least 17 Palestinians, news agency Reuters reported citing residents and medics.

As quoted by local reports, a journalist reporting from Deir al-Balah in central Gaza said that17 people were killed in "two separate attacks on homes in Nuseirat accommodating displaced families who had recently evacuated from Rafah".

He further added that "the first strike killed 10 people, including women and children. Five of them were from the same family".

"An hour later, the second attack targeted another family's home. The victims include not only the parents and their children but also the grandparents," he added.

The news agency reported thatseven bodies wrapped in white shrouds could be seen laid out on the grounds of Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in Deir al-Balah. The scenes were ahead of their funeral.

Women tried to comfort a young boy as he wept over the bodies of the deceased and men prayed over them.

Hanan al-Rai, wholost several family members in the airstrikes, said she ran out after the bombings only to find her daughter, grandchildren and others all killed.

"Why do our children die while their children live and play and are happy - and our children can't find a drop of water to drink or a bite to eat and on top of that they kill them," she said in an interview with the news agency.

Israel-Hamas death toll

The number of casualties may increase as reportedly, some people are still trapped under the rubble.

Meanwhile, the health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza said on Tuesday that at least 37,372 people have been killed in the territory so far during the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas.

The toll includes at least 25 deaths in the past 24 hours, a ministry statement said, adding that a total of 85,452 people had been wounded in the Gaza Strip since the war began when Hamas militants attacked Israel on October 7. It's not clear whether or not the latest 17 deaths in Nuseirat were added to the latest toll.

Watch:Israel had specific intelligence on Kibbutz attack

US envoy calls for 'urgent' diplomacy

US envoy Amos Hochstein on Tuesday called for the "urgent" de-escalation of cross-border exchanges of fire between Lebanon's Hezbollah and Israeli forces.

Hezbollah is an Iran-backed armed group and an ally of the Palestinian militant movement Hamas. The cross-border exchanges have been raging since the start of the Gaza war, but the group stepped up attacks on northern Israel last week after an Israeli strike killed one of its senior commanders.

"The conflict... between Israel and Hezbollah has gone on for long enough," the presidential envoy said on a visit to Beirut.

"It's in everyone's interest to resolve it quickly and diplomatically -- that is both achievable and it is urgent."

Hochstein met with Lebanese parliament speaker Nabih Berri, a key Hezbollah ally, a day after holding talks in Jerusalem with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

"Speaker Berri and I had a very a good discussion," Hochstein said.

"We discussed the current security and political situation in Lebanon as well as the deal on the table right now with respect to Gaza, which also provides an opportunity to end the conflict across the Blue Line", the demarcation line between Israel and Lebanon.

Disclaimer: WION takes utmost care to accurately and responsibly report ongoing developments on the Israel-Palestine conflict after the Hamas attacks. However, we cannot independently verify the authenticity of all statements, photos and videos.

(With inputs from agencies)