'Dismembered bodies' as Israel kills 66 in latest north Gaza massacre
Israeli jets carpet-bombed a residential block near the war-battered Kamal Adwan hospital in the besieged north Gaza on Thursday, killing at least 66 Palestinians and wounding more than 100, according to health officials.
At least 22 more were killed hours earlier in separate bombardments in Gaza City’s Sheikh Radwan neighbourhood, including 10 children.
According to eyewitnesses, the attacks flattened entire residential buildings and left scores of wounded people stranded without help due to the Israeli-enforced obstruction of emergency response.
"What arrives at the hospital are remains of martyrs and dismembered bodies, most of them children and women," Dr Hussam Abu Safiya, Kamal Adwan hospital director, told Al Jazeera after the attack in north Gaza.
He said with no ambulances available, medical staff had to treat and transport victims of the attack on their own.
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"There are 200 people at the site of the massacre, and there are huge numbers of martyrs, injuries and missing people under the rubble who have not been recovered," he explained.
'There are 200 people at the site of the massacre, and there are huge numbers of martyrs, injuries and missing people under the rubble'
- Dr Hussam Abu Safiya, Kamal Adwan hospital director
Homes belonging to five families, al-Madhoon, Khadr, Abu Wadi, Shakoorah, and Nassar were targeted in the attack, according to Al Jazeera correspondent Anas al-Sharif.
"We are talking about the complete destruction of an entire residential block in this area that is in the vicinity of the Kamal Adwan hospital," al-Sharif reported.
He added that these homes housed a number of displaced people from the Jabalia refugee camp and the rest of Gaza's north who were forcibly expelled by Israeli forces in recent weeks.
"They [displaced Palestinians] headed towards the Beit Lahia projects. The Israeli warplanes followed them, and committed a number of massacres over the past few days, with this being the latest huge massacre.
'No one is listening'
In Gaza City's Sheikh Radwan, the bombing hit a five-storey building belonging to the al-Arouqi family, completely destroying it, according to local media.
Civil defence search-and-rescue team said they struggled to recover those trapped and missing under the rubble.
"Tell the world there are no facilities, no tools, there's nothing we could work with. No one is listening," a civil defence worker told Al Jazeera, as he attempted to pull out a decapitated corpse from the wreckage.
"Right now there is a great number of missing people, martyred and wounded. Only a small number of casualties were removed. Unfortunately, the majority are martyred and wounded."
The Israeli military launched a new offensive on north Gaza on 5 October, described by rights groups and experts as part of a plan to ethnically cleanse the area of Palestinians.
It began after a controversial proposal named the "Generals' Plan" was presented to the Israeli government, which would see areas north of the Netzarim Corridor, which cuts Gaza in two, emptied of its residents so Israel could establish a "closed military zone".
According to the plan, anyone who chooses to stay would be considered a Hamas operative and could be killed.
The UN agency for Palestinian refugees, Unrwa, estimates that about 400,000 people remain in Gaza's north, including Gaza City.
The besieged areas have remained under a debilitating blockade and media blackout since the attack was launched, with Israeli forces accused of exacerbating starvation and malnutrition as part of the plan to ethnically cleanse Palestinians.
Israeli forces have killed more than 2,200 people during the ongoing assault, expelled tens of thousands of people, raided hospitals and forced search-and-rescue workers to cease operations.
Overall, the Israeli forces have killed at least 44,000 people and wounded over 100,000 since the war on Gaza began almost 13 months ago.
At least 17,000 children and 12,000 women are among those killed, according to the Gaza-based government media office.
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