► A hospital in Gaza claims to be targeted again
The director of Kamal Adwan Hospital, in the north of the Gaza Strip, said Monday, December 23, that his establishment was still targeted by Israeli strikes and called for help from the international community “before it’s too late”.
“The bombings did not stop throughout the night, houses and buildings were destroyed nearby. Since this morning, the hospital has been targeted by bombs dropped by drones, which continue to threaten our fuel and oxygen reserves.said Dr Hossam Abou Safiya in a press release. “The situation is extremely serious and requires urgent international intervention before it is too late”he added.
When contacted, the Israeli army responded that it had no knowledge “of the slightest strike on Kamal Adwan hospital during the night”. She had already declared the same thing on Sunday after a first call for help from the director of the establishment.
► Seven Lebanese released by Israel
Seven Lebanese who were detained by Israel were handed over to the UN force in southern Lebanon (UNIFIL) on Sunday, the Lebanese National News Agency (Ani) said.
According to this source, the “seven citizens” had been arrested by the Israeli army after the ceasefire between Israel and Lebanese Hezbollah came into force on November 27.
The detainees were handed over to UNIFIL in Ras Naqoura, on the border with Israel, then transported to hospital by the Lebanese Red Cross for check-ups. They were then transferred by “military intelligence services” in a headquarters in the city of Saida, in the south of the country.
► Deadly strike on a Gaza school
Despite growing hopes for a ceasefire, the Islamist movement Hamas and two other Palestinian groups suggested on Saturday that a truce deal was “closer than ever”violence continues in the Gaza Strip.
The territory was hit several times this weekend, in the space of a few hours by Israeli strikes. One of them targeted a school building housing displaced people in the city of Gaza (north) during the night from Saturday to Sunday and killed eight people, including four children.
The Israeli army claimed to have carried out “a targeted strike against Hamas terrorists who were operating” within the establishment “to prepare terrorist attacks against Israeli troops and the State of Israel”. “Multiple measures had been taken upstream to reduce the risk of affecting civilians”she clarified.
► Attacks in Deir al-Balah and Khan Younes
According to civil defense, a strike targeting the home of a family in Deir al-Balah (center) left 13 victims. The Israeli army said it had targeted, “on the basis of information”a terrorist from Islamic Jihad, another Palestinian armed movement in the Gaza Strip, and that the mentioned number of 13 dead did not correspond with the information available to her.
Gazan rescuers also reported three deaths, “unidentified”in a strike near Rafah (south), and four others in Gaza City in a drone attack.
On Sunday evening, the toll rose further, with seven dead, according to civil defense, in a refugee camp in Khan Younes (south), where the Israeli army said it had targeted “a Hamas terrorist”.
► The Pope condemns the “cruelty” of the strikes in Gaza
Pope Francis condemned on Sunday for the second time in two days the “cruelty” strikes against Gaza, despite protests from Israeli diplomacy, which had accused it the day before of “double standards”.
“It is with pain that I think of Gaza, of so much cruelty, of the machine-gunned children, of the bombing of schools and hospitals”he said at the end of the Sunday Angelus prayer.