300 killed, mostly women and children, in past 24 hrs: Palestinian health ministry
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Cairo: The Palestinian health ministry revealed that at least 300 people were killed, the majority of them women and children, while 800 others were injured in the Gaza Strip on Saturday.
According to Gaza authorities, more than 2,200 people have been killed, mostly children and nearly 10,000 wounded from Israeli air strikes and shelling. Rescue workers searched desperately for survivors of nighttime air raids.
Israel has unleashed the most severe bombardment Gaza has ever seen, subjecting the enclave, which is home to 2.3 million Palestinians, to a complete siege and causing extensive destruction of its infrastructure.
This was prompted by a massive attack by Hamas fighters who, on October 7th, stormed through Israeli towns, targeting civilians while taking hostages.
This attack marked the most brutal assault on civilians in the country's history, resulting in an unexpected onslaught that claimed the lives of approximately 1,300 people.
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The shocking mobile phone videos and reports from medical and emergency services depicted horrifying atrocities in the towns and kibbutzes that were overrun.
In response to the situation, Israeli troops readied themselves for a ground assault on the Hamas-controlled enclave. As of Sunday, it was reported that approximately one million people had evacuated their homes in the face of the escalating conflict.
The Israeli military on Friday told residents of the northern half of the Gaza Strip, which includes the enclave's biggest settlement, Gaza City, to move south immediately.
On Saturday, it said it would guarantee the safety of Palestinians fleeing on two main roads until 4 p.m. (1300 GMT). Troops were massing as the deadline passed.
Hamas officials, on the other hand, told people not to leave and said roads out are unsafe.
Some residents said they would not leave, remembering the "Nakba," or "catastrophe," when many Palestinians were forced from their homes during the 1948 war that accompanied Israel's creation.
