At least 16 Palestinians were killed and over 100 injured in the early hours of Thursday when Israeli forces launched a deadly airstrike on civilians waiting for humanitarian aid near Wadi Gaza, north of Nuseirat, in the central Gaza Strip.

Eyewitnesses reported that Israeli drones and military vehicles targeted crowds gathered in hopes of receiving food and medical supplies. The attack is part of a wider pattern of strikes on aid seekers, with dozens killed in recent weeks under similar circumstances.

Dr. Mohamed Abu Selmia, director of Al-Shifa Hospital, urged residents to avoid these so-called “humanitarian points,” calling them “death traps falsely labeled as aid centers.”

Simultaneously, Israeli forces demolished homes in Jabalia al-Balad, in northern Gaza, reducing residential buildings to rubble. In total, at least 72 Palestinians were killed across Gaza on Thursday alone, according to health officials.

Since the escalation began on October 7, 2023, over 55,600 Palestinians have been killed and 129,880 injured, with the majority being women and children, according to Gaza’s Ministry of Health.

The latest violence comes amid a broader regional escalation, with 224 deaths reported in Iran and 24 in Iraq following Israeli strikes and retaliatory attacks.

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