At least 93 Palestinians were killed or went missing, and dozens were injured in an Israeli attack on an apartment building in the northern Gaza town of Beit Lahiya on Tuesday, the 29th of October, the Gaza Health Ministry said, while the US called the incident “horrifying”, reports Reuters.
At least 20 children were among the dead, medics said.
Israel did not immediately comment, but it has often questioned the casualty figures published by the Hamas-run media office, saying they are often exaggerated.
Israel’s main ally, the US, said it was concerned by the high number of casualties and State Department spokesman Matthew Miller called it “a horrifying incident with a horrifying outcome”.
Washington has contacted Israeli officials and “made it clear that we want to know exactly what happened, how it could be that dozens of children reportedly died, and we don’t yet know the answer to that question,” Miller said.
He said the incident is a reminder of why the US wants a ceasefire to end the conflict, arguing that it is in Israel’s interest.
Miller also said that Washington was “deeply concerned” by legislation passed by Israel on Monday banning the UN relief agency UNRWA and noted that under US law and policy there could be consequences if the legislation is implemented.
The UN Human Rights Office said it was “appalled” by one of the deadliest single attacks in nearly three months and called for an immediate and transparent investigation into the circumstances.
A video obtained by Reuters showed several bodies wrapped in blankets lying on the ground outside the bombed four-storey building. As neighbours rushed to help rescuers, more bodies and survivors were pulled from the rubble.
On Monday, the Palestinian Civil Relief Service said that some 100 000 people were trapped in Jabalya, Beit Lahiya and Beit Hanoun without medical and food supplies.
The Ministry of Health said on Tuesday that those injured in the Beit Lahiya strike could not receive care because doctors were forced to evacuate a nearby hospital.
“Critical cases will succumb to their fate and die without help,” the ministry said in a statement.
The Gaza emergency service said its operations had been halted due to a three-week Israeli offensive in northern Gaza. Israel says its campaign is aimed at destroying the Palestinian militant group Hamas, whose fighters have regrouped in the area during the year-long war.
The war in Gaza began with a Hamas attack on Israel on the 7th of October 2023, in which 1 200 people were killed and more than 250 hostages were taken. The death toll from Israel’s retaliatory assault on the Gaza Strip has exceeded 43 000, the Gaza Health Ministry said on Monday.
The Gaza war has sparked wider conflict in the Middle East, with Israel bombing Lebanon and sending forces south to destroy Iran-backed Hezbollah, an ally of Hamas.