Gaza: at least 870 killed, of them at least 230 children and 93 women. Over 3,600 injured, of them over 400 severely injured (Palestinian Ministry of Health figures). Israel: 3 civilians and 7 soldiers killed. Over 78 civilians injured, of them 4 severely injured, not including those treated for shock, and 60 soldiers injured, of them one in critical condition.
The 'Arafat family fled their home under bombing and took shelter with relatives. The next day, that house was bombed and caught fire, as the family escaped to an UNWRA school.
On the first day of the attack on Gaza, Khaled al-Astal rode his bike to see a place that had been bombed. As he drew near, more missiles were fired into the crowd that had gathered, killing him instantly.
Israeli human rights groups have launched a blog supplying ongoing updates about the harm caused to civilians as part of the fighting in the Gaza Strip and Southern Israel.
In the last few hours, B'Tselem learned of civilians who are trapped in several places in the Gaza Strip, all under the army's control. B'Tselem demands that the army immediately allow ambulances to evacuate the dead and wounded and to enable civilians to be freed from areas under its control.
On 6 Jan., the Israeli army bombed the a-Daiyah home in the center of Gaza City, killing 21 men, women and children from a single family.
On 4 Jan., when the Israeli army began shelling a residential area in central Gaza, the Sukar family fled their home and took nothing with them. They are now taking shelter in an UNRWA school, under harsh conditions.
On 4.1.09, soldiers ordered the extended a-Samuni family to gather in one building. The next morning, as some members tried to leave the building, it was shelled and dozens were killed and injured
On 2 January, children from the al-Astal family were playing in the street. A bombardment from the air hit three of them, killing them on the spot.
The family, parents and their two infant children, flee again and again from the bombing and shelling, unable to find a safe place.
On 3 January, naval ships and tanks bombed a-Dawaida, in central Gaza Strip, forcing the Abu Dahruj family to flee their home.
On 1 January, the residential area in which the Abu al-Haj family lives, in al-Maghraqeh, Gaza Strip, was bombed. The family fled from their home, taking nothing with them, and found refuge in a school in the Nuseirat refugee camp.
Israel’s regime of apartheid and occupation is inextricably bound up in human rights violations. B’Tselem strives to end this regime, as that is the only way forward to a future in which human rights, democracy, liberty and equality are ensured to all people, both Palestinian and Israeli, living between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean Sea.
Since the Hamas attack on 7 October 2023, Israel has acted in a coordinated and deliberate manner to destroy Palestinian society in the Gaza Strip, committing genocide against its residents. In light of Israel’s actions in Gaza, the public statements made by Israeli decision-makers, and the international community’s failure to take effective action, there is a serious risk that the Israeli regime will expand the genocide to other areas under its control—first and foremost, the West Bank.
B’Tselem calls on the Israeli public and the international community to use every tool available under international law to bring an immediate end to Israel’s genocide against the Palestinian people.