9 killed in strikes in Gaza overnight, hospital says

DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — At least nine Palestinians were killed overnight in strikes in Gaza, according to local hospitals, even as much of the world’s attention was focused on the fighting between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon.

The nine people were killed in at least four separate strikes in Gaza City, according to Shifa Hospital, which received the bodies.

The Israeli military did not immediately comment on the strikes. Last week, Israel killed the top Hamas military leader, two weeks after strikes that killed his predecessor.

The fatalities were the latest in the coastal enclave since an October ceasefire deal attempted to halt a more than two-year war between Israel and the Palestinian militant Hamas group in Gaza. While the heaviest fighting has subsided, the shaky ceasefire has seen almost daily Israeli fire.

Israeli forces have carried out repeated airstrikes and frequently fire on Palestinians near military-held zones, killing more than 936 since the ceasefire took effect, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry.

The ministry, which is part of the Hamas-led government, is generally seen as reliable by United Nations agencies and independent experts. It does not give a breakdown of civilian and militant deaths.

Militants have carried out shooting attacks on troops, and Israel says its strikes are in response to violations of the truce or threats to its troops. Four Israeli soldiers have been killed in Gaza since the ceasefire.

Israel launched its offensive in Gaza in response to Hamas’ October 2023 attack that killed some 1,200 people and took 251 others hostage.