KHAN YOUNIS, Gaza Strip — Alaa Abu Hilal lost his pregnant wife and young son overnight when an Israeli airstrike hit a tent encampment in the al-Mawasi area of western Khan Younis.
Standing outside Gaza’s Nasser Hospital on Wednesday, he cradled the lifeless body of his son, overcome with grief.
“I lost my whole family,” Abu Hilal said. “My wife was martyred while she was pregnant, and my son was martyred. I am back to nothing.”
The Israeli military, which has renewed a major bombing campaign across Gaza, said Wednesday that it targeted a Hamas military site in northern Gaza overnight.
The latest wave of Israeli airstrikes on Tuesday killed more than 400 people, according to Palestinian health officials, shattering nearly two months of relative calm since a ceasefire took effect in January.
Israel has warned that the new offensive is “just the beginning”, while Hamas and Israeli officials blame each other for the collapse of truce negotiations.
Hamas, which still holds 59 of the roughly 250 hostages taken during its October 7, 2023, attack on Israel, accused Israel of jeopardizing ongoing mediation efforts for a permanent ceasefire but did not issue an immediate threat of retaliation.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu defended the strikes, saying they were necessary because Hamas had rejected ceasefire proposals.
Netanyahu urged civilians in Gaza to move to safer areas, insisting that Hamas bore responsibility for civilian casualties.
The war erupted when Hamas-led gunmen attacked Israel, killing about 1,200 people, according to Israeli authorities.
Since then, the Israeli military campaign has killed more than 48,000 people, according to Palestinian health officials.
