Gaza: Israeli forces kill dozens of Palestinians as controversial Israel-backed aid hubs reopen

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At least two people have been killed in an Israeli drone strike in Khan Younis, a medical source has told Al Jazeera Arabic.

The strike reportedly targeted a tent in a displacement camp west of the south Gaza city.

Activists on board the Madleen vowed to continue their journey to Gaza "until the last minute" after Israel ordered its military to block the vessel.

The boat, part of the Freedom Flotilla Coalition, left Sicily last week with a cargo of relief supplies to break Israel's siege on Gaza.

"We'll stay mobilised until the last minute - until Israel cuts the internet and networks," European parliament member Rima Hassan told AFP from the boat.

"There are 12 of us civilians on board. We are not armed. There is only humanitarian aid," she said.

Earlier in the day, Israel's defence minister Israel Katz ordered the military to block the boat from reaching the Palestinian territory.

(AFP and TNA staff)

The number of aid seekers killed by Israeli fire in Rafah earlier today has risen to 13, medics at Nasser Hospital tell Al Jazeera Arabic.

Medics said earlier that at least four people were killed in the shooting, which occurred near an aid site operated by the Israel-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation.

The Israeli military has acknowledged opening fire on the crowd but did not specify how many people it thought had been shot.

At least 31 people have now been killed in Israeli attacks in Gaza on Sunday, Al Jazeera Arabic is reporting, citing medical sources.

Sensitive Israeli documents obtained by Tehran should be unveiled soon, Minister of Intelligence Esmail Khatib told state TV on Sunday, describing them as a "treasure trove" which will strengthen Iran's offensive capabilities.

Iranian state media reported on Saturday that Iranian intelligence agencies had obtained a large trove of sensitive Israeli documents. Khatib said these were related to Israel's nuclear facilities and its relations with the United States, Europe and other countries, and to its defensive capabilities.

There was no immediate official comment from Israel.

It was not clear whether the information breach was linked to a reported hacking of an Israeli nuclear research centre last year which Tehran is only disclosing now amid heightened tensions over its nuclear programme.

"The transfer of this treasure trove was time-consuming and required security measures. Naturally, the transfer methods will remain confidential but the documents should be unveiled soon," Khatib said, adding that in terms of volume, "talking of thousands of documents would be an understatement."

Israel’s defense minister has vowed to prevent an aid boat carrying Greta Thunberg and other activists from reaching the Gaza Strip.

Defense Minister Israel Katz said Sunday that Israel wouldn't allow anyone to break its naval blockade of the Palestinian territory, which he said was aimed at preventing Hamas from importing arms.

Israeli forces have stormed the town of al-Khader, south of Bethlehem in the occupied West Bank, where they assaulted an elderly farmer, according to the Wafa news agency on Sunday.

The assault reportedly took place on the property of 63-year-old Muhammad Yaqoub Sabih, who was hospitalised after the incident, local sources told Wafa.

The report also stated that Sabih’s wife and daughter were briefly detained during the raid.

Israeli forces have killed at least 106 Palestinians in Gaza over the past 24 hours, the local health ministry said this morning.

Hospitals have received the bodies of 108 people over the past day, two of which were recovered from the rubble, it said in a statement. Almost 400 others were injured during the same period.

The overall death toll in the 20-month war has climbed to at least 54,880, with 126,227 others injured, according to the ministry's latest tally.

Thousands of others are believed to be buried beneath the rubble. 

The spokesperson for Gaza's civil defence Mahmoud Bassal has denied Israeli allegations that he's a member of Hamas.

The Israeli military on Sunday accused Bassal of being "an active terrorist" that spreads misinformation on behalf of the Palestinian armed group, citing documents it claimed were membership lists found during its offensive in Gaza.

"This is a false accusation," Bassal told AFP. "I do not work for any military organisation," he said, adding that the agency's mission was guided by international law.

The civil defence agency has operated in the Gaza Strip for decades, deploying rescuers to rush victims of Israeli air strikes to hospital.

(AFP and TNA staff)

The Trump administration's ban on citizens of 12 countries entering the US will go into effect on Monday morning at 0401 GMT.

Among the 12 countries are several from the Middle East and North Africa region, including Iran, Libya, Sudan and Yemen.

(Reuters and TNA staff)

Israeli shelling has killed at least one person and injured several others in Deir al-Balah, central Gaza, a medical source at the Shuhada al-Aqsa Hospital has told Al Jazeera Arabic.

Five people have reportedly been killed and dozens injured by Israeli fire near aid sites operated by the Israel-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation.

Medical sources told Al Jazeera that four people were killed and around 70 wounded by Israeli gunfire near a facility in Rafah. Another person was killed and several others wounded in similar circumstances near the GHF's site in central Gaza, according to another medical source at Al-Awda Hospital.

The Israeli military said on Sunday that it struck a member of the Palestinian armed group Hamas in southern Syria, days after carried out its first airstrikes in the country in nearly a month.

Hamas did not immediately comment on the strike.

Israel on Tuesday said it hit weapons belonging to the government in retaliation for the firing of two projectiles towards Israel for the first time under the country's new leadership.

Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz held Syria's President Ahmed al-Sharaa accountable.

(Reuters and TNA staff)

The Israel-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation plans to re-open its food distribution centres on Sunday after four days of closure.

The group stopped distribution on Wednesday after Israeli forces committed a series of massacres against civilians near its facilities.

They were supposed to re-open on Thursday but have remained closed, with GHF accusing Hamas of threatening its staff.

More than 100 Palestinians have been killed in the violence near GHF sites since they opened at the end of May.

At least 21 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza since dawn on Sunday, according to medical sources, as Israeli forces continue their relentless assault on the shattered territory.

Attacks have been reported across the strip, including in Rafah, Khan Younis, Gaza City, and Al-Mawasi.