At least 40 dead in Israeli air strike on humanitarian zone in Gaza Strip

JERUSALEM (AP) — At least 40 people were killed and 60 others wounded in an Israeli attack on an area in the Gaza Strip where Palestinians displaced by the war between Israel and Hamas live, authorities said Tuesday.

The Palestinian news agency WAFA announced the number of victims of the attack, citing medical authorities, but said the figures could still change.

Details of the attack on the coastal community of Mawasi west of Khan Younis, which the Israeli military has declared a humanitarian zone, remained unclear. The area is home to many Palestinians displaced by the war between Israel and Hamas. The Israeli military devastated the entire Gaza Strip following Hamas's attack on Israel on October 7.

The Israeli military described the attack as a hit against “significant Hamas terrorists operating inside a command and control center,” but did not immediately provide further evidence.

In a statement reportedly released, Hamas denied this, although Israel has long accused Hamas and other militants of hiding among the civilian population.

Footage circulating on social media showed deep craters at the site of the attack, with the surrounding rubble covered with torn tents, a bicycle and other debris. Rescue workers were digging through the sand with shovels. Passersby were digging with their hands, illuminated by the light from their cell phones. At least one crater at the site appeared to be up to 10 meters deep.

The Israeli military said it had used “precision munitions, aerial surveillance and other means” that it did not specify in order to limit the number of civilian casualties.

According to the Gaza Health Ministry, over 40,000 Palestinians have been killed since the war began. The count does not distinguish between fighters and civilians. The war has caused enormous destruction and around 90 percent of Gaza's 2.3 million inhabitants have had to flee their homes, often several times.

In their attack on October 7, the Hamas-led militants killed around 1,200 people, mostly civilians. Another 250 were kidnapped and about 100 are still being held. Most of the remaining hostages were released in exchange for Palestinians held by Israel during a week-long ceasefire last November. About a third of the remaining hostages are believed dead.

Israeli military stops convoy for over eight hours

Meanwhile, the UN agency responsible for aiding displaced Palestinians said the Israeli military had stopped a convoy for more than eight hours on Monday, despite coordination with the troops.

The agency's director, Philippe Lazzarini, said the detained staff were trying to participate in a polio vaccination campaign in northern Gaza and Gaza City.

“The convoy was stopped at gunpoint just past the Wadi Gaza checkpoint and there were threats to arrest UN staff,” he wrote on the social platform X. “Bulldozers inflicted severe damage on the UN armored vehicles.”

He said the staff and convoy later returned to a UN base, but it was unclear whether a polio vaccination campaign would take place in northern Gaza on Tuesday.

“UN staff must be able to carry out their duties in safety and be protected at all times in accordance with international humanitarian law,” he wrote. “It is no different in Gaza.”

The Israeli military did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The vaccination campaign was launched after doctors in the Palestinian enclave identified the first case of polio in 25 years. The aim is to vaccinate 640,000 children during a war that has devastated the health system.

Associated Press writer Jon Gambrell in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, contributed to this report.