GAZA, Feb. 4 (Xinhua) -- At least 21 Palestinians, including a paramedic, were killed in Israeli attacks across the Gaza Strip on Wednesday, the Palestinian Civil Defense in Gaza said.
Mahmoud Basal, spokesperson for the Civil Defense, told Xinhua that the Israeli army had been carrying out artillery and airstrikes on Gaza City and Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip since dawn, targeting tents sheltering displaced people and residential buildings.
In the latest attack, an Israeli drone struck a tent housing displaced people in the al-Mawasi area west of Khan Younis, killing three, including two women and a paramedic, according to Basal.
He added that 14 people, including three children and five women, were killed and several others wounded in artillery shelling on the outskirts of the Zeitoun and Tuffah neighborhoods east of Gaza City. Some of the wounded were taken to Al-Shifa Medical Complex.
Earlier, four people, including a child, were killed in Israeli artillery shelling that targeted tents sheltering displaced people in the Qizan Rashwan area south of Khan Younis. The victims were taken to Nasser Medical Complex in the city.
Also on Wednesday, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said in a statement that militants opened fire on its troops during routine operations near the northern Gaza border, severely injuring an Israeli reserve officer.
"Upon identifying the fire, IDF armored units and IAF aircraft conducted precise strikes in the area. The IDF views this attack as a blatant violation of the current ceasefire agreement," it said.
In response, Hamas dismissed the Israeli claim as a "flimsy pretext" to justify continued killings in the Gaza Strip.
Israeli escalation was "an attempt to impose a permanent reality of abuse and terrorism in Gaza," in flagrant disregard for the terms of the ceasefire agreement and existing understandings, Hamas said, calling for immediate international pressure to stop Israel's violations.
Since a ceasefire between Hamas and Israel came into effect on Oct. 10, 2025, Israel has killed 556 Palestinians and wounded 1,500 others, according to Gaza-based health authorities on Wednesday. ■
