At least three people were killed in the attacks, which came despite a ceasefire with Hamas being in place.
3 hours ago
Rushdi Abualouf,Gaza correspondent, Istanbuland
Ian Aikman
Reuters
Israel says it killed the commander of Hamas's military wing, Mohammed Odeh, in a strike in Gaza on Tuesday - days after his predecessor died in a similar attack.
At least three Palestinians were killed and dozens more were injured in Tuesday's major attack, which hit a residential building in one of Gaza City's busiest market areas, local medics and witnesses said.
Israel's military and Shin Bet security service and said buildings that served as a hideout for Odeh were targeted after his movements were tracked for several months. There has been no immediate comment from Hamas.
It is the latest deadly Israeli strike on Gaza despite a ceasefire with Hamas that began in October.
The strike hit the upper three floors of the al-Kayali building in the centre of Gaza City, where streets were busy with shoppers ahead of the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Adha.
A statement from the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) and Shin Bet said: "As part of the joint operation by the IDF and Shin Bet to eliminate the terrorist Mohammed Odeh, several buildings in the heart of Gaza City that served as a hideout for him were attacked, after months of intelligence surveillance in order to track his movements and the movements of his assistants in the organisation."
They added that they had also struck "a nearby apartment belonging to a Hamas terrorist who raided on October 7 and was part of Odeh's circle of assistants", referring to the Hamas-led attack on southern Israel that triggered the war in Gaza.
Rescue teams rushed to the scene of the strikes but struggled to reach the upper floors because of the scale of the damage and congestion in the area.
Witnesses said at least five missiles struck the building almost simultaneously from different directions.
One resident said he heard the sound of a helicopter hovering overhead before the attack.
Footage from the scene showed ambulances and civil defence crews searching through the damaged building as crowds gathered nearby.
Reuters
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said on Tuesday that Odeh was "one of the architects of the October 7 massacre".
"Odeh was responsible for the murder, abduction, and wounding of many Israeli citizens and IDF soldiers," the statement continued.
That attack also targeted a residential building and killed at least three people, according to eyewitnesses and a local source.
Israel has conducted regular strikes across Gaza since a ceasefire began on 10 October.
Hamas has repeatedly accused Israel of breaching the terms of the ceasefire and attacking civilians. The Palestinian territory's Hamas-run health ministry has reported the killing of more than 900 people in Israeli strikes during the ceasefire.
The Israeli government maintains it has licence to target Hamas members and has in turn accused Hamas of breaching the ceasefire agreement by failing to disarm.
The latter phases of a US-led peace plan for Gaza have yet to come into force, with progress stalling since the US and Israel started a war with Iran in February.
The US announced the start of the second phase of the plan in January, with governance of Gaza assumed by a transitional, technocratic administration alongside the demilitarisation and reconstruction of the territory.
In his statement, Netanyahu said Israel would "continue to pursue anyone who took part in the October 7 massacre", adding: "Sooner or later, Israel will reach them all."
About 1,200 people were killed in the Hamas-led attack and 251 others were taken hostage.
Israel responded by launching a massive military campaign in Gaza, which reduced much of the Palestinian territory to ruins and left many of its 2.1 million residents displaced.
Israeli forces have killed more than 72,800 people in Gaza, according to its health ministry, whose figures the UN considers reliable.
The board has received donations, but they have been deposited directly via its JPMorgan account, according to the board’s spokesperson.
LFB said the building was producing “a significant amount of smoke” and urged people in the area to keep windows and doors closed.
Of the 6,772 votes cast at a meeting that lasted for hours, 67% voted in favor of the boycott, 31% voted against, and 2% abstained, according to the immediate results of the vote viewed by JTA.
In a separate report by the AFP in Arab News, it was reported on Wednesday that “dozens of undeclared chemical weapons have been found in Syria."