An Israeli drone strike has killed two Palestinian children in southern Gaza, a hospital reported.
The two brothers died when a drone struck close to a school sheltering displaced people near Beni Suhaila, staff at Nasser Hospital said.
The boys, Fadi Abu Assi, 11, and Goma Abu Assi, eight, were gathering firewood for their wheelchair-bound father, according to their uncle, Mohamed Abu Assi.
He said: “They are children…what did they do? They do not have missiles or bombs, they went to gather wood for their father so he can start a fire.”
At the funeral, the boys’ father wept over one of his children, whose white shroud was peeled back to show his face.
Asked for comment by Sky News, the IDF responded: “Earlier today, IDF troops identified two suspects who crossed the yellow line, conducted suspicious activities on the ground, and approached IDF troops operating in the southern Gaza Strip, posing an immediate threat to them.
“Following the identification, the IAF eliminated the suspects in order to remove the threat.”
Palestinians walk among piles of rubble, amid a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, in the northern Gaza Strip.
Pic: Reuters
It comes less than two months after a 20-point peace deal, brokered by US President Donald Trump, took effect in October.
Now Hamas is calling on mediators to pressure Israel to stop violating the ceasefire.
Israel, which accuses Hamas of breaking the ceasefire itself, says its strikes are aimed at militants violating the truce.
At least 352 Palestinians have been killed since the ceasefire took effect on October 10, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry.
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Sky sees Gaza devastation
The Hamas-run ministry, which does not differentiate between civilians and combatants, says the death toll from Israel’s offensive in Gaza has now passed 70,000.
Israeli officials have questioned the accuracy of the figures, accusing Hamas of exaggerating the numbers, though the militant group denies this.
Read more:
‘Almost two children a day killed in Gaza’
Gaza: It’s impossible to imagine people still living here
The health ministry says it had refrained from adding thousands of reported deaths to the official tally pending further checks.
Now with a shaky ceasefire in effect, officials claim they can take advantage of the relative calm to search for the dead.
The UN has previously described the ministry’s figures as “credible”.
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This report has been published as part of an auto-generated syndicated wire feed. Except for the headline, the content has not been modified or edited by Doonited
