At least 45 Palestinians killed in Israeli airstrikes across Gaza: civil defense

GAZA, April 18 (Xinhua) -- Israeli airstrikes across the Gaza Strip on Friday killed at least 45 Palestinians and injured dozens of others, according to the Civil Defense in Gaza.

Mahmoud Basal, spokesperson for the Civil Defense, said that in the southern city of Khan Younis, 10 people were killed in an Israeli airstrike targeting a residential home belonging to the Baraka family, while six others, including two children and a woman, died after an airstrike on a barbershop.

"Multiple other strikes in Khan Younis reportedly killed eight more people, while two others were killed in southern Rafah city," he added.

In the north, at least 13 people were killed and several others wounded when a strike hit the Maqdad family's home in the Tal al-Zaatar area, Basal said, noting six were killed in airstrikes on two displacement tents in Gaza City.

In a press statement, the Civil Defense warned that its emergency operations may grind to a halt in the coming days due to fuel shortages, which it attributed to the ongoing Israeli restrictions on aid and fuel entry.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said in a statement on Friday that, with the direction of intelligence, IDF troops are continuing their operational activity against militant organizations in Gaza, dismantling their infrastructure sites, and killing militants.

"The Israeli Air Force struck approximately 40 terror targets throughout Gaza, including terrorists, military structures, and weapons storage facilities," it said. ■