Israeli strikes on Gaza 'kill family of 10 including five kids', health officials say

A family of ten were among at least 23 people killed in war-torn Gaza by strikes, according to health officials. Five children, four women and a man from the same family were left dead in the southern city Khan Younis, a hospital said. And strikes in the north of the stricken enclave killed 13 including nine kids, according to another hospital. It comes as the UN has raised the alarm over ’s six-week-old blockade stopping food and supplies entering the territory.

Last month, Israel ended the ceasefire with Hamas – renewing its bombardment, killing hundreds and seizing large parts of Gaza to pressure the militants to accept changes to the agreement. Israel made no immediate comment on the latest strikes, which occurred overnight into Thursday.

Almost all of Gaza’s over two million people now rely for food on the only one million prepared meals produced daily by charity kitchens, according to the UN humanitarian office. Other food distribution programmes have shut down for lack of supplies, and the UN and other aid groups have been sending their remaining stocks to the charity kitchens.

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The only other way to get food in the enclave is from markets. However, most cannot afford to buy there due to the spiralling prices and widespread shortages, meaning aid is the primary food source for 80% of the population, the World Food Programme said. "The Gaza Strip is now likely facing the worst humanitarian crisis in the 18 months since the escalation of hostilities in October 2023," the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said.

Shaina Low, a spokesperson for the Norwegian Refugee Council, said most people in Gaza are now down to one meal a day. "It's far lower than what is needed," she said. Meanwhile, water is growing scarce too, with long lines of Palestinians standing to fill jerry cans from trucks. Omar Shatat, an official with a local water utility, said people are down to six or seven litres per day – well below the amount the UN estimates is required to meet basic needs.

On Wednesday, Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz said preventing humanitarian aid is one of the "central pressure tactics" used against Hamas – Israel accuses the group of siphoning off aid to maintain its rule. Israel is demanding Hamas release more hostages at the start of any new ceasefire and ultimately agree to disarm as well as leave the territory.

Katz said that even afterward Israel will continue to occupy large "security zones" inside Gaza. Hamas holds 59 hostages, 24 of whom are believed to be alive. It says it will only return them in exchange for the release of more Palestinian prisoners, a full Israeli withdrawal from Gaza and a lasting truce.

The war was sparked about Hamas' October 7 attack on Israel in 2023, which left about 1,200 dead. Israel's war in Gaza has killed over 51,000 Palestinians, according to the enclave's health ministry.