Israeli attacks across Gaza killed six Palestinians on Thursday, according to the territory’s civil defence agency and health officials, as violence continued despite an ongoing ceasefire between Israel and Hamas.
Although a truce remains in place, it has failed to completely stop hostilities in Gaza, while efforts to reach a permanent agreement to end the conflict have stalled.
Gaza’s civil defence agency reported that six people were killed in Israeli drone strikes and gunfire across the Palestinian territory.
The agency said two people were killed and several others wounded when an Israeli drone targeted the Nuseirat refugee camp in central Gaza. Four additional deaths were reported in other attacks.
Local hospitals confirmed receiving the bodies of six people killed in the strikes.
A security source in Gaza said an Israeli drone strike targeted a vehicle belonging to Hazem Qassem, a Hamas spokesperson. The source said Qassem was not inside the vehicle at the time, but his bodyguard was killed in the attack.
The bodyguard was among the six fatalities reported by Gaza’s civil defence agency.
According to Gaza’s health ministry, which is run by Hamas authorities and whose figures are considered credible by the United Nations, at least 1,092 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza since the ceasefire began in October last year.
The Israeli military said five of its soldiers and one civilian contractor have been killed in Gaza during the same period.
Restrictions on media access and limited movement inside Gaza have prevented journalists from independently verifying casualty figures or fully documenting the ongoing violence.
