Israeli airstrikes killed over 60 people in Gaza overnight, Palestinian officials said. The attacks hit homes and temporary shelters housing displaced civilians.
Gaza’s health ministry confirmed that 12 people died when a strike hit a stadium being used as a shelter in Gaza City. Another 11 were killed in a nearby neighborhood when their tent was destroyed.
Local accounts described panic and devastation.
“It was almost sunset,” one man said. “We were sitting on the street. Then a huge explosion. The whole area was filled with tents. Most of them were buried under sand.”
People began digging immediately. Many had no tools.
“Everyone used their hands,” he added. “Kids too. People from other areas came to help. Some of the dead—we didn’t even know who they were.”
Witnesses said a single blast leveled at least 15 tents. These weren’t military sites. They were shelters.
“These are just pieces of cloth,” a man said while digging. “There were 15 people under this one. Ten children. Two women. None of them made it.”
Most residents in these areas had already fled from earlier strikes. Some had relocated multiple times.
“We’re asking for peace,” a woman said. “We’re tired of moving. Every day it’s a new place. We’ve lost our homes. Now we’ve lost our children.”
In the wreckage lie the facts: ripped tents, the silence of scattered belongings, and the cries of those still searching. As for the victims? Palestinian health officials say they were the very people who had nowhere else left to go.
Mostly women and children. Meanwhile, when it comes to these specific attacks, the Israeli military isn’t talking.
This comes as international aid groups warn that these supposed ‘safe zones’ keep getting hit, leaving families with nowhere left to turn.
“This wasn’t near a military base,” one man said. “It was a shelter. And it’s gone now.”
Rescue work continued through Saturday. Volunteers dug through sand and debris. Some were searching for family. Others were still hoping to find survivors.
“Every strike moves us again,” one resident said. “We don’t know where to go anymore.”
The numbers are likely to rise as emergency responders uncover more of the damage. Peace talks have hit a wall. And in Gaza, families say they’re running out of places to hide—and hope.
