Gaza’s civil defence agency said Tuesday that an overnight Israeli air strike killed more than 55 people in a residential building in the northern district of Beit Lahia.
“More than 55 people have been martyred and dozens more wounded are under the rubble of a five-storey residential building belonging to the Abu Nasr family that was hit by the Israeli occupation last night in Beit Lahia,” agency spokesman Mahmud Bassal told AFP.
The Israeli military said it was “looking into the reports”.
“The explosion happened at night and I first thought it was shelling, but when I went out after sunrise I saw people pulling bodies, limbs and the wounded from under the rubble,” said Rabie al-Shandagly, 30, who had taken refuge in a nearby school in Beit Lahia.
“Most of the victims are women and children, and people are trying to save the injured, but there are no hospitals or proper medical care,” he told AFP.