Hamas says Israeli strikes kill 40 in Gaza safe zone

YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 10, ARMENPRESS. At least 40 people have been killed in southern Gaza and dozens more injured in Israeli strikes on a designated humanitarian zone, BBC reported citing the Hamas-run Civil Defence authority.

The Israeli military said its aircraft attacked an operations centre in Khan Younis belonging to Hamas fighters, and it had taken steps to mitigate risk of harming civilians.

Local residents said three strikes targeted tents housing displaced people in the humanitarian zone of al-Mawasi, west of the city of Khan Younis, causing seven metre-deep craters.

"Forty people were killed and more than 60 injured, while many are still under the rubble," the operations director of Hamas's Civil Defence authority told the BBC.

In a statement, an Israel Defense Forces (IDF) spokesperson said the military had attacked "significant Hamas terrorists who were operating within a command and control center embedded inside the Humanitarian Area in Khan Yunis."

"Prior to the strike, numerous steps were taken to mitigate the risk of harming civilians, including the use of precise munitions, aerial surveillance, and additional means," the spokesperson added.