ISTANBUL

At least 68 Palestinians were killed in the Gaza Strip on Wednesday, including many who suffocated from tear gas while waiting to receive aid, the Health Ministry said.

A ministry statement said that 21 people lost their lives, including 15 Gazans who suffocated from tear gas fired by the Israeli army near a US-run aid distribution point in Khan Younis city.

“For the first time, deaths have been recorded due to suffocation and the intense stampede of citizens at aid distribution centers,” it added.

Eight other Palestinians, including three children, were killed in Israeli strikes targeting tents for displaced families in the al-Mawasi area of Khan Younis.

The Israeli army also shelled a residential apartment and a coffee shop in the Nuseirat refugee camp in central Gaza, leaving three people dead.

In the northern Gaza Strip, two people were killed, and others were injured when fighter jets struck a home in Gaza City, while two others – including a young girl – were killed when another strike hit a civilian gathering on Abu Hasira Street in the west.

Israeli warplanes also shelled another home in Jabalia, killing four civilians and injuring 12 others.

Another Palestinian was killed in a strike on the Zarka area in the Tuffah neighborhood, northeast of Gaza City. Two more – including a child – were killed when an airstrike hit an apartment in the western part of the city.

Two more were killed in the northeast of the Nuseirat refugee camp, and two others died in a strike on a home in the camp’s western section.

In al-Bureij refugee camp, seven Palestinians were killed and others wounded in a strike on a civilian gathering in Block 3. In Block 1, a child was killed and seven others injured in a similar strike on civilians.

In Deir al-Balah, seven Palestinians were killed in two separate Israeli airstrikes. The first hit a group of civilians near al-Mazra'a School, killing four members of one family. The second struck another gathering on al-Hakar Street, killing three more.

Four Palestinians were also killed in a strike near a US-managed aid distribution center along the Netzarim corridor.

Meanwhile, two members of a family were killed when a home was struck in the Sabra neighborhood of Khan Younis.

Rejecting international calls for a ceasefire, the Israeli army has pursued a brutal offensive against Gaza since October 2023, killing more than 58,000 Palestinians, most of them women and children.

Last November, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.

Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war on the enclave.