Palestinian officials say 32 killed in Israeli strikes on southern Gaza

DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — At least 32 people have been killed in Israeli strikes in southern Gaza killed at least 32 people overnight and into Wednesday, Palestinian medical officials said.

The European Hospital in the hard-hit city of Khan Younis said it received the bodies after heavy Israeli airstrikes and ground operations in the city. It said the dead include several women and children, and that dozens of people were wounded.

There was no immediate comment from the Israeli military.

Israel has continued to strike what it says are militant targets across Gaza nearly a year after Hamas' Oct. 7 attack ignited the war there, even as attention has shifted to Lebanon, where Israel is battling Hezbollah, and to Iran, which launched a ballistic missile attack on Israel late Tuesday.

Hamas-led militants killed some 1,200 people on Oct. 7 and took around 250 hostage. Around 100 are still in captivity in Gaza, a third of whom are believed to be dead.

Israel’s retaliatory offensive has killed over 41,000 Palestinians, according to local health authorities, flattened wide areas across Gaza and displaced the vast majority of its 2.3 million people, often multiple times.

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