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Toronto Sun
3 days ago
- Politics
- Toronto Sun
Syrian government and leaders of the Druze minority announce new ceasefire
Published Jul 16, 2025 • 5 minute read Druze from Syria and Israel protest on the Israeli-Syrian border, in Majdal Shams in the Israeli-controlled Golan Heights, Wednesday, July 16, 2025, amid the ongoing clashes between Syrian government forces and Druze armed groups in the southern Syrian city of Sweida. Photo by Leo Correa / AP DAMASCUS, Syria (AP) — Syrian government officials and leaders in the Druze religious minority announced Wednesday a renewed ceasefire after days of clashes that have threatened to unravel the country's postwar political transition and have drawn intervention by Syria's powerful neighbour, Israel. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors Don't have an account? Create Account It was not immediately clear if the new agreement, announced by Syrian Interior Ministry and in a video message by a Druze religious leader, would hold. A previous ceasefire announced the day before quickly fell apart. A prominent Druze leader, Sheikh Hikmat Al-Hijri, disavowed the new agreement entered into by other Druze officials. The announcement came after Israel launched a series of rare airstrikes in the heart of Damascus, part of a campaign that it said is intended to defend the Druze and to push Islamic militants away from its border. The Druze form a substantial community in Israel as well as in Syria and are seen in Israel as a loyal minority, often serving in the military. The latest escalation in Syria began with tit-for-tat kidnappings and attacks between local Sunni Bedouin tribes and Druze armed factions in the southern province. Government forces that intervened to restore order then clashed with the Druze. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. The escalating violence has appeared to be the most serious threat yet to the ability of Syria's new rulers to consolidate control of the country after a rebel offensive led by Islamist insurgent groups ousted longtime despotic leader, Bashar Assad, in December, bringing an end to a nearly 14-year civil war. The primarily Sunni Muslim leaders have faced suspicion from religious and ethnic minorities, especially after clashes between government forces and pro-Assad armed groups in March spiralled into sectarian revenge attacks. Hundreds of civilians from the Alawite religious minority, to which Assad belongs, were killed. Israel threatens further escalation after strikes Israel has launched dozens of strikes targeting government troops and convoys heading into Sweida, and on Wednesday struck the Syrian Defense Ministry headquarters in the heart of Damascus. Your noon-hour look at what's happening in Toronto and beyond. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. Please try again This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. That strike killed one person and injured 18, Syrian officials said. Another strike hit near the presidential palace in the hills outside of Damascus. Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said after the airstrike in a post on X that the 'painful blows have begun.' An Israeli military official who spoke on condition of anonymity in line with regulations said the army was preparing for a 'multitude of scenarios' and that a brigade, normally comprising thousands of soldiers, was being pulled out of Gaza and sent to the Golan Heights. Syria's Defense Ministry had earlier blamed militias in the Druze-majority area of Sweida for violating a ceasefire agreement reached Tuesday. Meanwhile, reports of attacks on civilians continued to surface, and Druze with family members in the conflict zone searched desperately for information about their fate amid communication blackouts. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Syrian government soldiers drive in front of a house that was burned during the clashes between the Syrian government forces and Druze militias on the outskirts of Sweida city, southern Syria, Wednesday, July 16, 2025. Photo by Omar Sanadiki / AP In Jaramana near the Syrian capital, Evelyn Azzam, 20, said she fears that her husband, Robert Kiwan, 23, is dead. The newlyweds live in the Damascus suburb, but Kiwan would commute to Sweida for work each morning and got trapped there when the clashes erupted. Azzam said she was on the phone with Kiwan when security forces questioned him and a colleague about whether they were affiliated with Druze militias. When her husband's colleague raised his voice, she heard a gunshot. Kiwan was then shot while trying to appeal. 'They shot my husband in the hip from what I could gather,' she said, struggling to hold back tears. 'The ambulance took him to the hospital. Since then, we have no idea what has happened.' This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. A Syrian Druze from Sweida living in the United Arab Emirates said her mother, father, and sister were hiding in a basement in their home near the hospital, where they could hear the sound of shelling and bullets from outside. She spoke on condition of anonymity out of fear her family might be targeted. She had struggled to get hold of them, but when she reached them, she said, 'I heard them cry. I have never heard them this way before.' Another Druze woman living in the UAE with family members in Sweida, who also spoke on condition of anonymity, said a cousin told her that a house where their relatives lived had been burned down with everyone inside it. It reminded her of when the Islamic State extremist group attacked Sweida in 2018, she said. Her uncle was among many civilians there who took arms to fight back while Assad's forces stood aside. He was killed in the fighting. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. 'It's the same right now,' she told The Associated Press. The Druze fighters, she said, are 'just people who are protecting their province and their families.' The Druze religious sect began as a 10th-century offshoot of Ismailism, a branch of Shiite Islam. More than half of the roughly 1 million Druze worldwide live in Syria. Most of the other Druze live in Lebanon and Israel, including in the Golan Heights, which Israel captured from Syria in the 1967 Mideast War and annexed in 1981. Reports of killings and looting in Druze areas Videos surfaced on social media of government-affiliated fighters forcibly shaving the mustaches of Druze sheikhs, and stepping on Druze flags and pictures of religious clerics. Other videos showed Druze fighters beating captured government forces and posing by their dead bodies. AP reporters in the area saw burned and looted houses. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. No official casualty figures have been released since Monday, when the Syrian Interior Ministry said 30 people had been killed. The U.K.-based war monitor Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said more than 300 people had been killed as of Wednesday morning, including four children, eight women and 165 soldiers and security forces. The observatory said at least 27 people were killed in 'field executions.' Interim President Ahmad al-Sharaa issued a statement Wednesday condemning the violations. 'These criminal and illegal actions cannot be accepted under any circumstances, and completely contradicts the principles that the Syrian state is built on,' the statement read, vowing that perpetrators would be punished. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Druze in the Golan gathered along the border fence to protest the violence against Druze in Syria. Israel threatens to scale up its intervention On Wednesday, Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz said in a statement that the Israeli army 'will continue to attack regime forces until they withdraw from the area — and will also soon raise the bar of responses against the regime if the message is not understood.' Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a statement Tuesday night that Israel has 'a commitment to preserve the southwestern region of Syria as a demilitarized area on Israel's border' and has 'an obligation to safeguard the Druze locals.' Israel has taken an aggressive stance toward Syria's new leaders since Assad's fall, saying it doesn't want Islamist militants near its borders. Israeli forces have seized a U.N.-patrolled buffer zone on Syrian territory along the border with the Golan Heights and launched hundreds of airstrikes on military sites in Syria. Crime Entertainment Toronto & GTA World NFL
Glasgow Times
10-07-2025
- Health
- Glasgow Times
34 Palestinians and Israeli soldier killed in Gaza
The Israeli military also announced a soldier was killed in Gaza. The fighting in Gaza has shown no sign of slowing as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu meets with US President Donald Trump in Washington this week to work on a US-led ceasefire plan. Buildings that were destroyed during the Israeli ground and air operations stand in northern of Gaza Strip as seen from southern Israel (Leo Correa/AP) Hopes for an agreement in the near term appeared to be fading as Mr Netanyahu prepared to return to Israel. Mr Netanyahu is holding firm to the idea that Hamas must be destroyed, while Hamas wants a complete end to the war following the proposed 60-day truce. Gaza's Nasser Hospital reported a total of 21 deaths in air strikes in the southern town of Khan Younis and the nearby coastal area of Muwasi. It said three children and their mother, as well as two additional women, were among the dead. In central Gaza, at least 13 people were killed in the city of Deir al-Balah, including at least 10 people waiting to receive nutritional supplements at a medical clinic early on Thursday, according to Project Hope, an aid group that runs the clinic. Two women and five children were among the dead. 'This is just a tragedy, it is a violation of the humanitarian laws. No child waiting for food and medicine should face the risk of being bombed,' said Dr Mithqal Abutaha, the group's project manager, who was at another clinic at the time. 'It was a horrific scene,' he added. 'People had to come seeking health and support, instead they faced death.' He said the clinic, a humanitarian facility well known to all parties, was mildly damaged and will be closed for several days. The Israeli military said it struck near the medical centre when it was targeting a militant who had infiltrated into Israel on October 7 2023. It said it was investigating. Additionally, the military said Israeli troops have been working in Khan Younis to dismantle more than 130 Hamas infrastructure sites over the past week, including a 500-metre tunnel, missile launch sites, and weapons storage facilities. Over the past 24 hours, massive explosions in Gaza sent plumes of smoke into the sky and were visible from the border with Israel. On Thursday, the Israeli military announced that a soldier was killed in Khan Younis a day earlier after militants burst out of an underground tunnel and tried to abduct him. Smoke rises to the sky following an Israeli army bombardment in the northern Gaza Strip, as seen from southern Israel (Leo Correa/AP) The soldier was shot and killed, while troops in the area shot the militants, hitting several of them, the military said. Eighteen soldiers have been killed in the past three weeks, one of the deadliest periods for the Israeli army in months, putting additional public pressure on Mr Netanyahu to end the war. Two attackers killed a 22-year-old Israeli man at an Israeli supermarket in a settlement in the Israeli-occupied West Bank on Thursday afternoon, according to Israel's Magen David Adom emergency rescue services. Israeli police said two people in a stolen vehicle began attacking a security guard at the supermarket. Paramedics said people on site shot and killed the two attackers. Police did not release information about the attackers, but the Israeli military said forces are setting up roadblocks around the Palestinian town of Halhul, which is located around 10 kilometres (six miles) from the supermarket. Earlier on Thursday, a 55-year-old Palestinian man was killed in the West Bank, the Palestinian Health Ministry. The Israeli military said the man was shot after stabbing a soldier in the village of Rumana. The soldier suffered moderate wounds. The war in Gaza has sparked a surge of violence in the West Bank, with the Israeli military carrying out large-scale operations targeting militants that have killed hundreds of Palestinians and displaced tens of thousands. Construction vehicles demolish a building that was struck by an Iranian missile during the 12-day Israel-Iran war last month, in Bat Yam, Israel (Ohad Zwigenberg/AP) That has coincided with a rise in settler violence and Palestinian attacks on Israelis. Palestinian militants from the West Bank have also attacked and killed Israelis in Israel and the West Bank as tensions simmer. The war began after Hamas attacked Israel in 2023, killing around 1,200 people and taking 251 others hostage. Most have been released in earlier ceasefires. Israel responded with an offensive that has killed more than 57,000 Palestinians, more than half of them women and children, according to Gaza's Health Ministry. The ministry, which is under Gaza's Hamas-run government, does not differentiate between civilians and combatants. The UN and other international organisations see its figures as the most reliable statistics on war casualties. Meanwhile, Israel began demolitions on Thursday of more than a dozen buildings in the central city of Bat Yam, which saw the deadliest Iranian missile strike during the 12-day Israel-Iran war. A building that was struck by an Iranian missile during the 12-day Israel-Iran war last month, is demolished in Bat Yam, Israel (Ohad Zwigenberg/AP) Nine people were killed, including five members of the same family, in Bat Yam. The family were Ukrainian refugees who fled the war and came to Israel for medical treatment, according to Israeli media. Bat Yam mayor Tzvika Brot said the strike left 2,000 people – more than 1% of the city's population – homeless. Many are now living at hotels. 'We're going to demolish 20 buildings, but we're going to build them better, stronger, and there will be much more Israeli families running around here. That will be the best answer to our enemies,' he added. More than 15,000 Israelis were displaced from their homes due to damage from Iranian missiles, according to the Prime Minister's Office. Iran launched 550 missiles and more than 1,000 drones towards Israel, killing 28 people, and injuring more than 3,000. Iran's government said this week that at least 1,060 Iranians were killed in the war.
South Wales Argus
10-07-2025
- Health
- South Wales Argus
34 Palestinians and Israeli soldier killed in Gaza
The Israeli military also announced a soldier was killed in Gaza. The fighting in Gaza has shown no sign of slowing as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu meets with US President Donald Trump in Washington this week to work on a US-led ceasefire plan. Buildings that were destroyed during the Israeli ground and air operations stand in northern of Gaza Strip as seen from southern Israel (Leo Correa/AP) Hopes for an agreement in the near term appeared to be fading as Mr Netanyahu prepared to return to Israel. Mr Netanyahu is holding firm to the idea that Hamas must be destroyed, while Hamas wants a complete end to the war following the proposed 60-day truce. Gaza's Nasser Hospital reported a total of 21 deaths in air strikes in the southern town of Khan Younis and the nearby coastal area of Muwasi. It said three children and their mother, as well as two additional women, were among the dead. In central Gaza, at least 13 people were killed in the city of Deir al-Balah, including at least 10 people waiting to receive nutritional supplements at a medical clinic early on Thursday, according to Project Hope, an aid group that runs the clinic. Two women and five children were among the dead. 'This is just a tragedy, it is a violation of the humanitarian laws. No child waiting for food and medicine should face the risk of being bombed,' said Dr Mithqal Abutaha, the group's project manager, who was at another clinic at the time. 'It was a horrific scene,' he added. 'People had to come seeking health and support, instead they faced death.' He said the clinic, a humanitarian facility well known to all parties, was mildly damaged and will be closed for several days. The Israeli military said it struck near the medical centre when it was targeting a militant who had infiltrated into Israel on October 7 2023. It said it was investigating. Additionally, the military said Israeli troops have been working in Khan Younis to dismantle more than 130 Hamas infrastructure sites over the past week, including a 500-metre tunnel, missile launch sites, and weapons storage facilities. Over the past 24 hours, massive explosions in Gaza sent plumes of smoke into the sky and were visible from the border with Israel. On Thursday, the Israeli military announced that a soldier was killed in Khan Younis a day earlier after militants burst out of an underground tunnel and tried to abduct him. Smoke rises to the sky following an Israeli army bombardment in the northern Gaza Strip, as seen from southern Israel (Leo Correa/AP) The soldier was shot and killed, while troops in the area shot the militants, hitting several of them, the military said. Eighteen soldiers have been killed in the past three weeks, one of the deadliest periods for the Israeli army in months, putting additional public pressure on Mr Netanyahu to end the war. Two attackers killed a 22-year-old Israeli man at an Israeli supermarket in a settlement in the Israeli-occupied West Bank on Thursday afternoon, according to Israel's Magen David Adom emergency rescue services. Israeli police said two people in a stolen vehicle began attacking a security guard at the supermarket. Paramedics said people on site shot and killed the two attackers. Police did not release information about the attackers, but the Israeli military said forces are setting up roadblocks around the Palestinian town of Halhul, which is located around 10 kilometres (six miles) from the supermarket. Earlier on Thursday, a 55-year-old Palestinian man was killed in the West Bank, the Palestinian Health Ministry. The Israeli military said the man was shot after stabbing a soldier in the village of Rumana. The soldier suffered moderate wounds. The war in Gaza has sparked a surge of violence in the West Bank, with the Israeli military carrying out large-scale operations targeting militants that have killed hundreds of Palestinians and displaced tens of thousands. Construction vehicles demolish a building that was struck by an Iranian missile during the 12-day Israel-Iran war last month, in Bat Yam, Israel (Ohad Zwigenberg/AP) That has coincided with a rise in settler violence and Palestinian attacks on Israelis. Palestinian militants from the West Bank have also attacked and killed Israelis in Israel and the West Bank as tensions simmer. The war began after Hamas attacked Israel in 2023, killing around 1,200 people and taking 251 others hostage. Most have been released in earlier ceasefires. Israel responded with an offensive that has killed more than 57,000 Palestinians, more than half of them women and children, according to Gaza's Health Ministry. The ministry, which is under Gaza's Hamas-run government, does not differentiate between civilians and combatants. The UN and other international organisations see its figures as the most reliable statistics on war casualties. Meanwhile, Israel began demolitions on Thursday of more than a dozen buildings in the central city of Bat Yam, which saw the deadliest Iranian missile strike during the 12-day Israel-Iran war. A building that was struck by an Iranian missile during the 12-day Israel-Iran war last month, is demolished in Bat Yam, Israel (Ohad Zwigenberg/AP) Nine people were killed, including five members of the same family, in Bat Yam. The family were Ukrainian refugees who fled the war and came to Israel for medical treatment, according to Israeli media. Bat Yam mayor Tzvika Brot said the strike left 2,000 people – more than 1% of the city's population – homeless. Many are now living at hotels. 'We're going to demolish 20 buildings, but we're going to build them better, stronger, and there will be much more Israeli families running around here. That will be the best answer to our enemies,' he added. More than 15,000 Israelis were displaced from their homes due to damage from Iranian missiles, according to the Prime Minister's Office. Iran launched 550 missiles and more than 1,000 drones towards Israel, killing 28 people, and injuring more than 3,000. Iran's government said this week that at least 1,060 Iranians were killed in the war.
Irish Examiner
10-07-2025
- Health
- Irish Examiner
34 Palestinians and Israeli soldier killed in Gaza
Israeli strikes pounded the Gaza Strip on Wednesday night and Thursday, killing at least 34 Palestinians, including 10 people waiting for care outside a medical clinic, according to local hospitals and aid workers. The Israeli military also announced a soldier was killed in Gaza. The fighting in Gaza has shown no sign of slowing as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu meets with US President Donald Trump in Washington this week to work on a US-led ceasefire plan. Buildings that were destroyed during the Israeli ground and air operations stand in northern of Gaza Strip as seen from southern Israel (Leo Correa/AP) Hopes for an agreement in the near term appeared to be fading as Mr Netanyahu prepared to return to Israel. Mr Netanyahu is holding firm to the idea that Hamas must be destroyed, while Hamas wants a complete end to the war following the proposed 60-day truce. Gaza's Nasser Hospital reported a total of 21 deaths in air strikes in the southern town of Khan Younis and the nearby coastal area of Muwasi. It said three children and their mother, as well as two additional women, were among the dead. In central Gaza, at least 13 people were killed in the city of Deir al-Balah, including at least 10 people waiting to receive nutritional supplements at a medical clinic early on Thursday, according to Project Hope, an aid group that runs the clinic. Two women and five children were among the dead. 'This is just a tragedy, it is a violation of the humanitarian laws. No child waiting for food and medicine should face the risk of being bombed,' said Dr Mithqal Abutaha, the group's project manager, who was at another clinic at the time. People had to come seeking health and support, instead they faced death 'It was a horrific scene,' he added. 'People had to come seeking health and support, instead they faced death.' He said the clinic, a humanitarian facility well known to all parties, was mildly damaged and will be closed for several days. The Israeli military said it struck near the medical centre when it was targeting a militant who had infiltrated into Israel on October 7 2023. It said it was investigating. Additionally, the military said Israeli troops have been working in Khan Younis to dismantle more than 130 Hamas infrastructure sites over the past week, including a 500-metre tunnel, missile launch sites, and weapons storage facilities. Over the past 24 hours, massive explosions in Gaza sent plumes of smoke into the sky and were visible from the border with Israel. On Thursday, the Israeli military announced that a soldier was killed in Khan Younis a day earlier after militants burst out of an underground tunnel and tried to abduct him. Smoke rises to the sky following an Israeli army bombardment in the northern Gaza Strip, as seen from southern Israel (Leo Correa/AP) The soldier was shot and killed, while troops in the area shot the militants, hitting several of them, the military said. Eighteen soldiers have been killed in the past three weeks, one of the deadliest periods for the Israeli army in months, putting additional public pressure on Mr Netanyahu to end the war. An Israeli man in his 20s was killed during an attack at an Israeli supermarket in a settlement in the Israeli-occupied West Bank on Thursday afternoon, according to Israel's Magen David Adom emergency rescue services. Magen David Adom said two people attacked Israeli shoppers with knives, before security guards on site shot them. Earlier on Thursday, a 55-year-old Palestinian man was killed in the West Bank, the Palestinian Health Ministry. The Israeli military said the man was shot after stabbing a soldier in the village of Rumana. The soldier suffered moderate wounds. The war in Gaza has sparked a surge of violence in the West Bank, with the Israeli military carrying out large-scale operations targeting militants that have killed hundreds of Palestinians and displaced tens of thousands. Construction vehicles demolish a building that was struck by an Iranian missile during the 12-day Israel-Iran war last month, in Bat Yam, Israel (Ohad Zwigenberg/AP) That has coincided with a rise in settler violence and Palestinian attacks on Israelis. Palestinian militants from the West Bank have also attacked and killed Israelis in Israel and the West Bank as tensions simmer. The war began after Hamas attacked Israel in 2023, killing around 1,200 people and taking 251 others hostage. Most have been released in earlier ceasefires. Israel responded with an offensive that has killed more than 57,000 Palestinians, more than half of them women and children, according to Gaza's Health Ministry. The ministry, which is under Gaza's Hamas-run government, does not differentiate between civilians and combatants. The UN and other international organisations see its figures as the most reliable statistics on war casualties. Meanwhile, Israel began demolitions on Thursday of more than a dozen buildings in the central city of Bat Yam, which saw the deadliest Iranian missile strike during the 12-day Israel-Iran war. A building that was struck by an Iranian missile during the 12-day Israel-Iran war last month, is demolished in Bat Yam, Israel (Ohad Zwigenberg/AP) Nine people were killed, including five members of the same family, in Bat Yam. The family were Ukrainian refugees who fled the war and came to Israel for medical treatment, according to Israeli media. Bat Yam mayor Tzvika Brot said the strike left 2,000 people – more than 1% of the city's population – homeless. Many are now living at hotels. 'We're going to demolish 20 buildings, but we're going to build them better, stronger, and there will be much more Israeli families running around here. That will be the best answer to our enemies,' he added. More than 15,000 Israelis were displaced from their homes due to damage from Iranian missiles, according to the Prime Minister's Office. Iran launched 550 missiles and more than 1,000 drones towards Israel, killing 28 people, and injuring more than 3,000. Iran's government said this week that at least 1,060 Iranians were killed in the war.
Western Telegraph
10-07-2025
- Health
- Western Telegraph
34 Palestinians and Israeli soldier killed in Gaza
The Israeli military also announced a soldier was killed in Gaza. The fighting in Gaza has shown no sign of slowing as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu meets with US President Donald Trump in Washington this week to work on a US-led ceasefire plan. Buildings that were destroyed during the Israeli ground and air operations stand in northern of Gaza Strip as seen from southern Israel (Leo Correa/AP) Hopes for an agreement in the near term appeared to be fading as Mr Netanyahu prepared to return to Israel. Mr Netanyahu is holding firm to the idea that Hamas must be destroyed, while Hamas wants a complete end to the war following the proposed 60-day truce. Gaza's Nasser Hospital reported a total of 21 deaths in air strikes in the southern town of Khan Younis and the nearby coastal area of Muwasi. It said three children and their mother, as well as two additional women, were among the dead. In central Gaza, at least 13 people were killed in the city of Deir al-Balah, including at least 10 people waiting to receive nutritional supplements at a medical clinic early on Thursday, according to Project Hope, an aid group that runs the clinic. Two women and five children were among the dead. 'This is just a tragedy, it is a violation of the humanitarian laws. No child waiting for food and medicine should face the risk of being bombed,' said Dr Mithqal Abutaha, the group's project manager, who was at another clinic at the time. 'It was a horrific scene,' he added. 'People had to come seeking health and support, instead they faced death.' He said the clinic, a humanitarian facility well known to all parties, was mildly damaged and will be closed for several days. The Israeli military said it struck near the medical centre when it was targeting a militant who had infiltrated into Israel on October 7 2023. It said it was investigating. Additionally, the military said Israeli troops have been working in Khan Younis to dismantle more than 130 Hamas infrastructure sites over the past week, including a 500-metre tunnel, missile launch sites, and weapons storage facilities. Over the past 24 hours, massive explosions in Gaza sent plumes of smoke into the sky and were visible from the border with Israel. On Thursday, the Israeli military announced that a soldier was killed in Khan Younis a day earlier after militants burst out of an underground tunnel and tried to abduct him. Smoke rises to the sky following an Israeli army bombardment in the northern Gaza Strip, as seen from southern Israel (Leo Correa/AP) The soldier was shot and killed, while troops in the area shot the militants, hitting several of them, the military said. Eighteen soldiers have been killed in the past three weeks, one of the deadliest periods for the Israeli army in months, putting additional public pressure on Mr Netanyahu to end the war. An Israeli man in his 20s was killed during an attack at an Israeli supermarket in a settlement in the Israeli-occupied West Bank on Thursday afternoon, according to Israel's Magen David Adom emergency rescue services. Magen David Adom said two people attacked Israeli shoppers with knives, before security guards on site shot them. Earlier on Thursday, a 55-year-old Palestinian man was killed in the West Bank, the Palestinian Health Ministry. The Israeli military said the man was shot after stabbing a soldier in the village of Rumana. The soldier suffered moderate wounds. The war in Gaza has sparked a surge of violence in the West Bank, with the Israeli military carrying out large-scale operations targeting militants that have killed hundreds of Palestinians and displaced tens of thousands. Construction vehicles demolish a building that was struck by an Iranian missile during the 12-day Israel-Iran war last month, in Bat Yam, Israel (Ohad Zwigenberg/AP) That has coincided with a rise in settler violence and Palestinian attacks on Israelis. Palestinian militants from the West Bank have also attacked and killed Israelis in Israel and the West Bank as tensions simmer. The war began after Hamas attacked Israel in 2023, killing around 1,200 people and taking 251 others hostage. Most have been released in earlier ceasefires. Israel responded with an offensive that has killed more than 57,000 Palestinians, more than half of them women and children, according to Gaza's Health Ministry. The ministry, which is under Gaza's Hamas-run government, does not differentiate between civilians and combatants. The UN and other international organisations see its figures as the most reliable statistics on war casualties. Meanwhile, Israel began demolitions on Thursday of more than a dozen buildings in the central city of Bat Yam, which saw the deadliest Iranian missile strike during the 12-day Israel-Iran war. A building that was struck by an Iranian missile during the 12-day Israel-Iran war last month, is demolished in Bat Yam, Israel (Ohad Zwigenberg/AP) Nine people were killed, including five members of the same family, in Bat Yam. The family were Ukrainian refugees who fled the war and came to Israel for medical treatment, according to Israeli media. Bat Yam mayor Tzvika Brot said the strike left 2,000 people – more than 1% of the city's population – homeless. Many are now living at hotels. 'We're going to demolish 20 buildings, but we're going to build them better, stronger, and there will be much more Israeli families running around here. That will be the best answer to our enemies,' he added. More than 15,000 Israelis were displaced from their homes due to damage from Iranian missiles, according to the Prime Minister's Office. Iran launched 550 missiles and more than 1,000 drones towards Israel, killing 28 people, and injuring more than 3,000. Iran's government said this week that at least 1,060 Iranians were killed in the war.
