6 Gazans killed in Israeli artillery shelling in new ceasefire violation

GAZA CITY, Palestine/ ISTANBUL

Six Palestinians, including a woman, were killed and five others injured on Friday in Israeli artillery shelling in Gaza City, in the latest violation of a ceasefire agreement, medical sources said.

The bodies of the victims were transferred to the Al-Ahli Baptist Hospital in central Gaza after Israeli forces shelled a school-turned shelter in Al-Tuffah neighborhood in eastern Gaza City, the sources told Anadolu.

According to witnesses, an Israeli tank advanced into the neighborhood and fired shells at the shelter, causing the casualties.

Israeli forces prevented ambulance and civil defense crews from reaching the site for more than two hours, they added.

The attack occurred as a wedding celebration was being held inside the shelter, the witnesses said.

The targeted area is among the locations from which the Israeli army had withdrawn under the ceasefire agreement in force in the Gaza Strip since Oct. 10.

Palestinians have accused Israel of repeatedly violating the ceasefire deal that halted a two-year war that has killed nearly 70,700 people, mostly women and children, and injured over 171,000 others since October 2023.

According to the Health Ministry, at least 395 Palestinians have been killed and 1,088 others wounded in Israeli attacks since the ceasefire.