Israeli attack on Gaza City tent camp kills at least seven

At least seven people have been killed in an Israeli air attack on a Gaza City tent camp housing displaced people, according to Gaza’s Civil Defence.

A source at al-Shifa Hospital told Al Jazeera reporters on the ground that at least 15 people were injured in the attack on Saturday, with many being treated in the hospital’s intensive care unit.

Women and children are believed to be among the casualties, said Al Jazeera’s Hani Mahmoud, reporting from Gaza City.

The Israeli drone strikes caused “a huge explosion” and a “state of panic” at the United Nations school compound housing displaced people, Mahmoud said.

“The attack targeted a tent next to another tent, and there seemed to be a wedding going on at that moment,” he added.

“People were seen running out of the displacement site into the streets where civilian vehicles were deployed right away just to transport the injuries caused by the attack.”

The Israeli army told the AFP news agency that it had “targeted terrorists in that sector”, without elaborating.

The attack came amid continued Israeli violations of the so-called “ceasefire” agreement that took effect on October 10.

‘Horrific massacre’

Hamas spokesperson Hazam Qassem issued a statement condemning the “horrific massacre”, which he said was part of Israel’s “continued escalation of its war of extermination against civilians”.

The attack was one of several reported in the enclave on Saturday, which together killed at least nine people.

One strike earlier in the day in southern Gaza’s Khan Younis area hit another tent, killing a man who was scheduled to be married later in the day, according to local medical sources.

“The whole family was ready to celebrate his wedding. Now, we’re attending his funeral instead,” the man’s cousin told AFP.

Israel’s military accused the targeted individual of being a “cell commander” in Hamas’s military wing, without offering evidence.

AFP cited Gaza’s Civil Defence as saying another Israeli strike in south-east Gaza City killed a 37-year-old man on Saturday evening.

“We’re seeing attacks scale up compared to the early days of the ceasefire,” said Mahmoud.

Hamas, Palestinian factions meet in Cairo

The attacks came as Palestinian group Hamas convened for meetings with mediators and other Palestinian factions in Egypt to discuss the future of the enclave amid the beleaguered ceasefire process.

On top of Israel’s repeated attacks in recent months, more than half of Gaza remains under Israeli military control in defiance of the ceasefire’s terms.

The first phase of the ceasefire 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 the disarmament of Hamas and a gradual withdrawal of the Israeli military, has been stalled for months.

Hamas’s Qassem had said this weekend’s meetings in Cairo would focus on ensuring the full implementation of the first phase of the agreement, including ending what he described as Israeli violations, reopening border crossings and allowing humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip.

He said the discussions would also address issues related to the second phase of the ceasefire agreement, including proposals concerning the deployment of international forces in Gaza and the disarmament of Palestinian factions.

In his statement after Israel’s deadly Gaza City attack Saturday, Qassem accused Israel of “working to undermine and destroy the agreement”.