Israeli airstrikes on a police post in Gaza City and the Nuseirat refugee camp in central Gaza have killed at least 10 Palestinians, according to medical sources. The attack on the municipal police headquarters in central Gaza City resulted in nine deaths, including the newly appointed police chief and the director of the women's police force, and wounded 15 others.
Al Jazeera's Hani Mahmoud, reporting from Gaza City, said the bombardment occurred at a busy time near a park crowded with civilians, including children. Earlier in the day, a separate strike on Nuseirat camp killed one Palestinian, bringing Wednesday's death toll to at least 10.
The Israeli army claimed its air force struck two Hamas commanders in Nuseirat and later a Hamas commander in the Tuffah area of Gaza City, but provided no evidence of their affiliation. Hamas rejected these justifications as "baseless and false allegations used to justify its aggression and cover up its deliberate targeting of civilian police and unarmed civilians."
Hamas accused the Israeli government of "deliberately undermining these efforts and dangerously pushing towards reigniting the war of extermination against our people in the Gaza Strip." The group condemned the attacks as "a new war crime."
On Tuesday, Israeli strikes killed seven people, including a child, and wounded 14 others at a crowded cafe on Gaza City's harbor, which has been turned into a displacement camp, according to Wafa news agency. The Israeli military again claimed, without evidence, that it had targeted Hamas commanders.
Wednesday's attacks occurred two days after US President Donald Trump's son-in-law and Middle East envoy Jared Kushner visited the region to push for a Trump-backed deal to end Israel's genocidal war on Gaza. Kushner's meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu failed to break a diplomatic deadlock after Netanyahu rejected an agreement for Israel to withdraw from the Strip in exchange for Hamas disarming.
Following the meeting, Kushner reiterated "Israel's right to defend itself" and threatened that Hamas must disarm or the US would support Israel to "finish the job in the appropriate way." The international community has called for restraint, but the cycle of violence continues.
Source: www.aljazeera.com