At least 23 people were killed after Israel conducted a retaliatory airstrike in the southern city of Rafah. The attack came hours after Hamas launched a barrage of rockets at Tel Aviv for the first time in months. The Israeli airstrike became devastating after rockets hurled by the Jewish nation hit tents that were housing displaced people. While giving an update on the matter, the Israeli military claimed that its airstrike struck a Hamas compound.
Authorities maintained that the strike was carried out with precise ammunition and on the basis of precise intelligence, an international media organisation reported. Meanwhile, the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) noted that the airstrike on May 26, 2024 took out Hamas Chief of Staff for the West Bank and another senior official that triggered the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas.
They also acknowledge that they are aware of reports indicating that as a result of the strike, the and the fire that was ignited, several civilians in the area were harmed and the incident is under review. A spokesperson from the Palestinian Reed Crescent Society noted that the death toll on May 26, 2024 was likely to rise as search and rescue operations are currently underway in Rafah’s Tal-al-Sultan neighbourhood.
The humanitarian body also maintained that the location, where the Israeli strike took place was designated by the Jewish nation as a humanitarian area. Hence it was not an area where the Israeli military called for evacuation. Senior Hamas official Sami Abu Zehri even went on to describe the attack in Rafah as a massacre and said that the US was responsible for aiding Israel with weapons and money.
The attack came hours after air raid sirens echoed the skies of Tel Aviv and across central Israel as Hamas launched a barrage of rockets towards Israel. This was the first time the terror group launched an attack into the Israeli territory for the first time since January this year.
The IDF claimed that a salvo of eight rockets was fired from the Rafah area in southern Gaza. The attack came as a surprise since it was believed that the group’s ability to fire rockets and drones towards Jewish nation territory had significantly diminished over the eight months of the war.
After the attack, the Israeli authorities informed that most of the rockets were intercepted. However, reports are emerging that two women suffered minor injuries from the strikes and were taken to a shelter for treatment. Several flights from Ben Gurion airport were delayed and cancelled due to attack.
