‘Israeli’ strikes kill at least 8 in Gaza: civil defence

‘Israeli’ attacks on Gaza killed at least eight people on Thursday, a spokesman for the civil defence agency in the Palestinian territory told AFP.

"At least eight martyrs as a result of Israeli airstrikes on Gaza City at dawn," with seven killed in strikes on residential buildings and one in the Al-Shati refugee camp to the west of Gaza City, said spokesman Mahmoud Bassal.

Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City also reported 15 people wounded in the strikes, he added.

The ‘Israeli’ military said later that it killed top commanders in Hamas’ general security mechanism.

According to the statement, the names of those killed are Hassan Labad, the deputy head of the security mechanism, along with senior officials Asem Shabir, Abdullah Abu Kaloub, and Mohammed Abu Marek.

Despite a truce technically in effect since October, daily violence has rocked the Gaza Strip, over half of which is under ‘Israeli’ military control in defiance of the ceasefire's terms.

‘Israel’ has killed at least 936 people since the ceasefire began, according to Gaza's health ministry, whose figures are considered reliable by the UN.

Both Hamas and ‘Israel’ accuse each other of violating the ceasefire.

The first phase of the truce involved the release of the last ‘Israeli’ captives held by Hamas in exchange for Palestinians detained by ‘Israel’.

A transition to the second phase of the ceasefire, which was supposed to involve Hamas's disarmament and a gradual withdrawal of the ‘Israeli’ army, has been stalled for months.

Last week, ‘Israeli’ Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he had ordered the military to take control of 70 percent of the Gaza Strip.

The latest head of Hamas's armed wing in Gaza, Mohammed Odeh, was killed in an ‘Israeli’ strike last week, a month after his predecessor was also killed.