Israeli airstrikes kill 6, level large family home in Gaza
Source: AP
By FARES AKRAM and JOSEPH KRAUSS
GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip (AP) — Israeli airstrikes killed at least six people across the Gaza Strip and destroyed the home of an extended family early Wednesday. Despite growing international pressure for a cease-fire, the military said it widened its strikes on militant targets in the Palestinian territory’s south to blunt continuing rocket fire from Hamas.
Residents surveyed the piles of bricks, concrete and other debris that had once been the home of 40 members of al-Astal family in the southern Gaza town of Khan Younis. They said a warning missile struck the building five minutes before the airstrike, allowing everyone to escape.
Ahmed al-Astal, a university professor, described a scene of panic before the airstrike hit, with men, women and children racing out of the building. Some of the women didn’t even have time to cover their hair with Muslim headscarves, he said.
“We had just gotten down to the street, breathless, when the devastating bombardment came,” he said. “They left nothing but destruction, the children’s cries filling the street. ... This is happening, and there is no one to help us. We ask God to help us.”
A Palestinian walks by a building hit by an Israeli airstrike in Gaza City, Tuesday, May 18, 2021. Since the fighting began last week, the Israeli military has launched hundreds of airstrikes it says are targeting Hamas' militant infrastructure, while Palestinian militants have fired thousands of rockets into Israel. (AP Photo/Hatem Moussa)
Read more: https://apnews.com/article/israel-middle-east-israel-palestinian-conflict-health-coronavirus-pandemic-9b59e6d675531576e819b6b948eba99d
