The Israeli army bombed several targets in the Gaza Strip on Saturday and its planes dropped leaflets aimed at encouraging the Palestinian population to help find hostages kidnapped on October 7 by armed militants, Reuters reported, citing News.ro.

Palestinian fighters clashed with tanks in the eastern suburb of Jabalia, in the northern Gaza Strip, from where the Israeli army began withdrawing troops, several witnesses told Reuters.

The Israeli military said its air force had attacked groups of fighter jets trying to plant bombs and missiles on their tanks.

In the Khan Yunis area, where Israel says it has stepped up its operations against Hamas, witnesses said tanks bombarded the area around Nasser Hospital overnight. This facility is the last major operating hospital in the Gaza Strip.

Israel defended itself by claiming that Hamas fighters were operating from and around hospitals, a claim denied by Hamas and medical personnel.

More than 160 dead and 280 wounded in Gaza in the last 24 hours

According to Gaza’s Health Ministry, Israeli strikes have killed 165 people and wounded another 280 in the past 24 hours, bringing the total number of deaths linked to Israeli operations to nearly 25,000 since the start of the offensive, which began after a Hamas attack on October 7.

This balance does not differentiate between civilians and combatants. Launched in response to a Hamas attack in which 1,200 people were killed and about 250 kidnapped, Israel’s offensive in the Gaza Strip has devastated entire neighborhoods of the enclave, displaced most of its 2.3 million residents and caused a humanitarian crisis, according to Israeli authorities. disaster, according to the UN.

Israel distributes leaflets using airplanes in Rafah

In Rafah, where more than a million Palestinians had gathered, Israel distributed leaflets with photographs of the 33 hostages and their names in Arabic, urging the displaced to contact Israeli authorities.

“Do you want to go back to your homes? Call if you recognize any of them,” the leaflets read.

During a short truce in November, more than a hundred hostages were released. According to Israel, 132 are still in Gaza, 27 of them have died.

“They are asking for people’s help because they are unable to take their hostages from the hands of the resistance,” commented Abu Ali from the northern Gaza Strip, pleading with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to end his “war” if he wants to recover. hostages