North Gaza suffers widespread destruction

CAIRO/GAZA — Palestinians displaced from northern Gaza said Israeli forces had inflicted widespread destruction on their home districts in their latest six-week-old offensive, while a rights group raised concerns Israel might put some areas permanently off-limits.

Jabalia, one of the largest of Gaza's eight refugee camps, as well as the towns of Beit Lahiya and Beit Hanoun and nearby villages, were among the first targets of Israel's ground offensive in October 2023 after Hamas militants attacked Israel.

On Thursday, Israel said its troops had killed dozens of "terrorists" and found a large quantity of weapons.

Former construction contractor Abu Raed, who was displaced from Jabalia, said Israeli forces were blowing buildings up remotely after booby-trapping them or sending in robots.

"The destruction before Oct 5, 2024 was big, but what happened in the past month can't be described in words. Most of the camp was destroyed this time," he told Reuters via a chat app.

Palestinian health ministry officials said Israel's latest airstrikes killed at least 15 people across the enclave, including four at Gaza City's Salahudeen School. There was no immediate Israeli comment.

Hussam Abu Safiya, the director of Kamal Adwan Hospital near Beit Lahiya, said no ambulances were working in the north.

Israel's warfare in Gaza is consistent with the characteristics of genocide, a special UN committee said on Thursday, as another human rights report stated Israel's displacement of Gazans amounts to a "crime against humanity".

Israel said the report's claims were "completely false", insisting its "efforts are directed solely at dismantling Hamas's terror capabilities and not at the people of Gaza".

In Lebanon, an Israeli airstrike killed at least 12 rescue workers on Thursday inside a civil defense center in the eastern city of Baalbek, according to health and rescue officials, hours after state media in Syria reported Israeli strikes in and around the capital killed at least 15 people.

Meanwhile, the US ambassador to Lebanon submitted a draft truce proposal to Lebanon's Speaker of Parliament Nabih Berri, on Thursday to halt fighting between Hezbollah and Israel, two political sources told Reuters without revealing details. There was no immediate comment from the US embassy in Beirut.

Agencies Via Xinhua