Israeli Strike in Central Gaza Kills at Least 17, Including Children
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Raven Ruma
- . September 21, 2024
- . Update: September 21, 2024 7:58 pm
Israeli forces targeted Gaza and Beirut in a sequence of increasing military strikes, causing notable death toll. The Gaza Civil Defense Directorate said that at least 17 people—including eight children—were killed on Saturday by a missile strike in central Gaza. The strike landed on Al-Zaytoun School, which had been providing refuge for Al-Zaytoun neighborhood displaced people. Emphasizing attempts to minimize civilian losses, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said that the strike targeted a Hamas command center housed in the school.
Beirut Attack Aimed for Hezbollah Commander
Confirmed by the Lebanese health ministry, an Israeli missile strike on Friday claimed at least 31 lives in south Beirut, including those of Hezbollah commander Ibrahim Aqil. Hezbollah suffers a major loss with Aqil’s passing, especially considering past strikes on the group’s communication channels all throughout Lebanon. With the U.S. earlier accusing him of participation in the 1983 U.S. embassy bombing in Beirut, which lost 63 lives, and the Beirut Marine barracks attack that later year killing 241 U.S. servicemen, Aqil had been a major player in Hezbollah’s military strategy.
Rising Deaths and Heroic Rescue Efforts
Rescue teams raced to evacuate survivors from the multistory building’s debris in a heavily populated neighborhood following the Beirut strike. Amid frantic attempts to save lives, nearby buildings rocked from the explosion as rescue services raced the injured to hospitals.
The IDF verified that the killing of Aqil and other Hezbollah leaders was in response to supposed plans for operations in northern Israel, particularly aiming for soldiers and civilians. These intended strikes were compared by Israeli military officers to those executed by Hamas in October of the previous year. Friday’s attack came after prior surprise Israeli operations including the destruction of communication devices belonging to Hezbollah militants, killing 39 persons Tuesday and Wednesday in Beirut and southern Lebanon.
World Reactions and Human Rights Issues
With the United Nations Human Rights Chief, Volker Türk, warning that Israel’s actions—including the detonation of communication devices—may violate international human rights law, the strikes have generated worldwide questions. This problem surfaced at a contentious Friday UN Security Council meeting when Israeli and Lebanese delegates traded scathing remarks.
These strikes emphasize the continual instability and terrible human cost in the continuous struggle between Israel, Hamas, and Hezbollah while both Gaza and Beirut remain trapped in the crossfire.
