Israeli strikes kill 17 in Gaza and destroy heavy equipment used to clear rubble

Israeli strikes on the Gaza Strip killed at least 17 Palestinians, mostly women and children, and destroyed bulldozers and other heavy equipment that had been supplied by mediators to clear rubble.

Separate strikes on Tuesday killed two people in Lebanon.

Israel’s 18-month offensive against Hamas has destroyed vast areas of Gaza, raising fears that much of it may never be rebuilt.

The territory already had a shortage of heavy equipment, which is also needed to rescue people from the rubble after Israeli strikes and to clear vital roads.

The Israeli military said it struck and destroyed around 40 pieces of heavy machinery. Israel said Hamas used the vehicles, including bulldozers, for planting explosives, digging tunnels and breaching fences, including during the major attack on October 7 2023.

A municipality in the Jabaliya area of northern Gaza said a strike on its parking garage destroyed nine bulldozers provided by Egypt and Qatar, which helped broker the ceasefire that took hold in January.

Israel ended the truce last month, renewing its bombardment and ground operations and sealing the territory’s two million Palestinians off from all imports, including food, fuel and medical supplies.

The strikes also destroyed a water tanker and a mobile generator provided by aid groups, and a truck used to pump sewage, the Jabaliya al-Nazla municipality said.

There was no immediate comment from the Israeli military on the strikes. The military says it only targets militants and blames civilian deaths on Hamas because the group operates in densely populated areas.

An Israeli air strike early on Tuesday destroyed a multi-storey home in the southern city of Khan Younis, killing nine people, including four women and four children, according to Nasser Hospital, which received the bodies. The dead included a two-year-old girl and her parents.

“They were asleep, sleeping in God’s peace. They had nothing to do with anything,” said Awad Dahliz, the slain girl’s grandfather.

“What is the fault of this innocent child?”

Also on Tuesday, a strike in the built-up Jabaliya refugee camp killed three children and their parents, and a strike in Nuseirat killed a man and two children, according to the Gaza Health Ministry’s emergency service and local hospitals.

Also on Tuesday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and US President Donald Trump spoke by phone, two weeks after meeting in Washington. Mr Trump wrote on his social networking site that the two spoke about trade and Iran, among other issues, adding: “The call went very well — we are on the same side of every issue.”

Mr Netanyahu’s hastily arranged visit to Washington was not deemed a big success after he appeared to fail to secure the support he wanted from Mr Trump on issues such as stopping Iran from developing nuclear weapons, reducing US tariffs, the influence of Turkey and the war in Gaza.

Israel’s air and ground war has killed more than 51,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children, according to the ministry, which does not say how many of the dead were civilians or combatants. Israel says it has killed around 20,000 militants, without providing evidence.

The war began when Hamas-led militants attacked southern Israel on October 7 2023, killing some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and taking 251 people hostage. They are still holding 59 hostages, 24 of whom are believed to be alive, after most of the rest were released in ceasefire agreements or other deals.

Hamas has said it will only free the remaining hostages in return for the release of Palestinian prisoners, a full Israeli withdrawal and a lasting ceasefire. Israel has said it will keep fighting until the hostages are returned and Hamas has been either destroyed or disarmed and sent into exile. It has pledged to hold onto so-called security zones in Gaza indefinitely.

An Israeli drone strike southeast of Beirut killed Hussein Atwi, a member of the Lebanese branch of the Muslim Brotherhood, a region-wide Sunni Islamist political movement. The group said he was leaving for work when the drone struck.

Lebanon’s Health Ministry said another person was killed in an Israeli strike on the southern Tyre province, without providing further details.

Israel has continued to carry out regular strikes across Lebanon despite reaching a ceasefire with the Hezbollah militant group in November. Israel says it is targeting militants and weapons caches. The Lebanese government says 190 people have been killed and 485 wounded since the ceasefire took hold.

Hezbollah began firing on Israel the day after Hamas’s October 7 attack. Israel responded with airstrikes, and the conflict in Lebanon escalated into a full-blown war in September when Israel carried out a heavy wave of strikes and killed most of Hezbollah’s top leadership.