Israeli strikes across Gaza on Friday killed at least 12 people, including six members of the local police force, Palestinian medics said. The attacks hit Gaza City, Beit Lahiya and Khan Younis, with Israel confirming a strike in Gaza City targeting Hamas militants. Gaza's Interior Ministry said some strikes targeted police, and residents reported a blast near a wedding hall. Violence has persisted despite the October 2025 ceasefire, with medics reporting roughly 800 Palestinian deaths since that deal.
Israeli Strikes Kill 12 Across Gaza, Including Police, Medics Say
Palestinians gather near the rubble of residential buildings destroyed during the two-year Israeli offensive, on the first day of the holy month of Ramadan, in Gaza City, February 18, 2026. REUTERS/Dawoud Abu Alkas/File Photo
CAIRO, April 24 (Reuters) - Palestinian health officials said Israeli fire killed at least 12 people across the Gaza Strip on Friday, including six members of the local police force.
An Israeli strike in Gaza City killed three people, two of them police officers; tank shelling in Beit Lahiya killed two others; and a separate strike in the southern city of Khan Younis killed seven people, including four police officers, local medics reported.
The Israeli military confirmed it had carried out a strike in Gaza City, saying the target was Hamas militants, but it did not immediately respond to requests for comment about the other reported attacks.
Gaza's Interior Ministry said the strikes in Gaza City and Khan Younis struck elements of the local police force, adding that the Khan Younis strike hit a police vehicle. Medics and residents said the blast occurred near a wedding hall.
Reuters has previously reported that Israel has stepped up operations against the Hamas-run police force, which the militant group has used to reestablish governance in areas it controls in the Gaza Strip.
Violence in Gaza has continued despite the October 2025 ceasefire, with near-daily Israeli operations in the territory. Local medics say at least 800 Palestinians have been killed since the ceasefire took effect; Israel says militants have killed four of its soldiers in that period. Both sides have accused the other of violating the ceasefire.
Gaza health authorities say more than 72,000 people in the territory have been killed since the war began in October 2023, most of them civilians. Israel's official tallies say Hamas' attacks on October 7, 2023, killed about 1,200 people.
(Reporting by Nidal al-Mughrabi; Writing by Pesha Magid; Editing by Toby Chopra, David Gaffen, Andrew Heavens and David Gregorio)
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