ShareGAZA/RAMALLAH: Palestinian rescuers reported more than 100 people killed Thursday in Zionist strikes on blockaded Gaza, where a US-backed organization said it intends to begin distributing aid by the end of the month. In the occupied West Bank, the Zionist military killed five Palestinians, hours after a pregnant Zionist settler was killed in a shooting, as hardline pro-settler leaders including a government minister called for Palestinian towns to be razed.
Gaza’s civil defense agency said the death toll from Zionist bombardment since dawn on Thursday had risen to 103. The Zionist entity blocked all aid from entering Gaza on March 2, before resuming operations on March 18, ending a six-week ceasefire. “(The Zionist entity’s) blockade has transcended military tactics to become a tool of extermination”, Human Rights Watch (HRW) interim executive director Federico Borello said in a statement Thursday.
HRW said “the (Zionist) government’s plan to demolish what remains of Gaza’s civilian infrastructure and concentrate the Palestinian population into a tiny area would amount to an abhorrent escalation of its ongoing crimes against humanity, ethnic cleansing and acts of genocide”.
Amir Selha, a 43-year-old Palestinian from north Gaza, reported “intense (Zionist) shelling all night”. “Tank shells are striking around the clock, and the area is packed with people and tents,” he said. He added that in early morning Zionist army drones dropped leaflets in his neighborhood, warning residents to move south. Most Gazans have been displaced at least once during 19 months of war between the Zionist entity and Hamas. The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, a US-supported NGO, said it would begin distributing humanitarian aid in Gaza this month after talks with Zionist officials. In a joint statement on Tuesday, five European members of the UN Security Council said that they were “deeply concerned” at the Zionist plan, “which the United Nations has said would not meet humanitarian principles”.
The United Nations on Thursday ruled out involvement with the US-backed foundation. “I made it clear that we participate in aid operations if they are in accordance with our basic principles,” said UN spokesman Farhan Haq. “As we’ve stated repeatedly, this particular distribution plan does not accord with our basic principles, including those of impartiality, neutrality, independence, and we will not be participating in this.”
The health ministry in Gaza said Thursday that 2,876 people have been killed since the Zionist entity resumed strikes on March 18, taking the war’s overall toll to 53,010. The United Nations estimates that 70 percent of Gaza is now either a Zionist-declared no-go zone or under evacuation order. Civil defense spokesman Mahmud Basal said the Zionist entity was “employing a policy of shrinking areas and emptying populated regions to pressure and terrorize civilians”.
Zionist Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Monday the military would enter Gaza “with full force” in the coming days. Despite the bombardment, efforts are still under way for a new hostage release and ceasefire deal. With US President Donald Trump touring Gulf Arab states, his Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff discussed the captives issue with Netanyahu on Wednesday. Hamas accused Netanyahu of undermining ceasefire and captive release efforts “through deliberate military escalation, showing indifference to his captives, endangering their lives”.
In the northern West Bank, the Zionist military said a manhunt was under way after an attack that killed a pregnant woman. Lieutenant General Eyal Zamir said: “We will use all the tools at our disposal and reach the murderers in order to hold them accountable.”
Users of Palestinian Telegram channels sharing information on West Bank checkpoints reported many road closures in the north of the territory on Thursday. WhatsApp groups for Zionist settlers in the West Bank were rife with calls for vengeance in retaliation for the attack. “To make sure this never happens again... we need real revenge! Erase every terror village,” one user said.
In the northern village of Tammun, Zionist troops killed five Palestinians in a raid the military described as targeting buildings suspected of being used to plan attacks. “The occupation forces killed five young men after besieging a house in the center of the village,” Tammun mayor Samir Qteishat told AFP. The West Bank has seen an upsurge in violence since the beginning of the Gaza war. – Agencies
