\n<\/p>\n
The number of Palestinians killed during the war in Gaza has passed 50,000, the Hamas-controlled health authority said on Sunday.<\/p>\n
The figures, which do not distinguish between fighters and civilians, cannot be independently verified.<\/p>\n
However, international organizations such as the UN consider them to be largely credible.<\/p>\n
The conflict was triggered by the attack on Israel by the Palestinian militant group Hamas and allied extremist groups on October 7, 2023.<\/p>\n
Around 1,200 people were killed and more than 250 Israelis were taken hostage in the Gaza Strip.<\/p>\n
A six-week ceasefire took effect in January, but Israel resumed its attacks this week, with hundreds of Palestinians being killed since.<\/p>\n
According to a media report on Sunday, around 30 people were killed in fresh Israeli attacks in southern Gaza.<\/p>\n
The Palestinian news agency WAFA reported various attacks, including drone strikes, in the Rafah and Khan Younis areas. Residential buildings and a vehicle were among the targets hit.<\/p>\n
The Israeli military had previously warned residents of the Tal al-Sultan district in Rafah that it would “launch an offensive against terrorist organizations” there.<\/p>\n
Residents were called upon to flee the combat zone. Videos circulated on social media of people fleeing Rafah on foot, some of them heavily laden and with small children.<\/p>\n
Hamas<\/strong> member among five killed in Israeli strike<\/strong><\/p>\n Five people, including a senior Hamas member, were killed in an Israeli attack on a hospital in the southern Gaza Strip on Sunday, according to Palestinian reports.<\/p>\n Staff at Nasser Hospital in the city of Khan Younis said the Israeli military had attacked the second floor of the hospital.<\/p>\n The Israeli military said in a statement that the target was a senior Hamas operative who had been active on the second floor of the hospital, shown on an accompanying diagram.<\/p>\n Hamas and Palestinian reports said the attack targeted and killed Ismail Barhum, a member of Hamas’ politburo.<\/p>\n The Israeli military initially refused to confirm this, but Defence Minister Israel Katz praised the military for killing Barhum.<\/p>\n Israeli media said Barhum was responsible for distributing funds within Hamas.<\/p>\n The Israeli military said the attack was “conducted following an extensive intelligence-gathering process and with precise munitions, in order to mitigate harm to the surrounding environment as much as possible.” It accused Hamas of using the hospital as a hideout.<\/p>\n Hamas said Barhum was treated at the hospital. The information provided by both sides could not initially be independently verified.<\/p>\n Hamas<\/strong> confirms death of senior leader<\/strong><\/p>\n Earlier on Sunday, Hamas said a senior official has been killed in an Israeli airstrike in the southern Gaza Strip.<\/p>\n The Islamist organization confirmed the death of Salah al-Bardawil, a member of its politburo, in a post on its Telegram channel.<\/p>\n Hamas said al-Bardawil and his wife were killed “in a treacherous Zionist assassination” in his tent in al-Mawasi, an area in the Gaza Strip designated as a humanitarian zone.<\/p>\n