Israeli airstrike said to kill family of four, including two children, in north Gaza

An Israeli airstrike in the northern Gaza Strip on Thursday morning killed a family of four, including two children, health officials said, as the Israeli military was reported to have escalated its strikes in recent days.

The strike hit a home in the Beit Lahia area, Palestinian reports said. A hospital official at Shifa Hospital in Gaza City identified the two child victims as girls aged 12 and 8.

The Israel Defense Forces told The Times of Israel that the strike had killed Muaman Abd al-Rahman Ahmad, “a military operative who took a direct part in fighting against IDF troops.”

According to the IDF, the building near the “Yellow Line” in the Beit Lahia area had been used in the past by terror operatives.

Before carrying out the strike overnight, the IDF said, it had issued a warning “to allow civilians to evacuate the structure.”