Hamas Denounces New War Crime After Israeli Strikes Kill 10 in Gaza

Displaced Palestinians carry the body of a victim away from the site of an Israeli strike that targeted the municipal police headquarters in Gaza City [Omar Al-Qattaa/ AFP]. Israeli strikes have killed at least 10 Palestinians in two separate attacks targeting a Gaza City police post and Nuseirat refugee camp in central Gaza. Hamas, which governs the Gaza Strip, condemned what it called “a new war crime”.

On Wednesday, medical sources at al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City stated they received nine Palestinian bodies following an attack on the municipal police headquarters in the centre of Gaza City, while another 15 people were wounded. Al Jazeera’s Hani Mahmoud, reporting from Gaza City, noted that the bombardment occurred at a busy time near a park crowded with civilians, including children. Among the victims of the Gaza City strike were a newly-appointed Gaza City police chief, the director of a women’s police force, and several officers.

Earlier in the day, a strike on Nuseirat refugee camp killed one Palestinian, medics reported, bringing Wednesday’s death toll to at least 10. The Israeli army claimed its air force struck two Hamas commanders in Nuseirat, and later targeted a Hamas commander in the Tuffah area of Gaza City, though no evidence of their affiliation was provided.

In an official statement, Hamas rejected Israel’s justification that the operation targeted resistance leaders, labeling the claim as baseless and false allegations intended to justify ongoing aggression and conceal the deliberate targeting of civilian police and unarmed civilians. Hamas further accused the Israeli government of deliberately undermining diplomatic efforts and dangerously pushing toward the reignition of the war of extermination against the people in the Gaza Strip.

On Tuesday, separate Israeli strikes killed seven people—including a child—and wounded 14 others at a crowded cafe on Gaza City’s harbour, an area that has been transformed into a displacement camp, according to the Wafa news agency. The Israeli military again claimed, without presenting evidence, that it had targeted Hamas commanders in the enclave.

The latest attacks unfolded amid a diplomatic deadlock, arriving two days after US President Donald Trump’s son-in-law and Middle East envoy Jared Kushner visited the region to advocate for a Trump-backed deal aimed at ending the war on Gaza. Kushner’s meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu failed to resolve the impasse after Netanyahu rejected an agreement involving an Israeli withdrawal from the Strip in exchange for Hamas disarming. Following the discussions, Kushner reiterated Israel’s right to defend itself and warned that Hamas must disarm or face US support for Israel to finish the job in the appropriate way.