Dozens dead after Israeli airstrike on humanitarian zone in Gaza

An airstrike on a humanitarian zone in Gaza has killed 71 people and injured nearly 300, according to the Hamas-run health ministry — one of the deadliest attacks in the territory in weeks. Jets hit the al-Mawasi camp, which the Israeli military had previously designated as a safe zone, near the city of Khan Yunis, according to both Gazan and Israeli officials. The Israeli military said the strike was intended to kill Mohammed Deif, the commander of Hamas’s military wing. He is believed to have overseen the planning of the October 7 attacks in Israel that killed more than 1,200 people last year and saw the abduction of 250 more. Deif has long been a target of Tel Aviv and is believed to have escaped multiple assassination attempts in the past. Read the best of our journalism: Subscribe to The Times and The Sunday Times YouTube channel: Find us on Facebook: