The Israeli military acknowledged Thursday two deadly strikes on the Maghazi refugee camp on Christmas Eve that killed dozens of Palestinians, noting the attacks killed civilians.
The admission comes as the Palestinian death toll exceeds 20,000 in the Israel-Hamas war and pressure rises on Israel to halt its all-out offensive in Gaza.
The Israeli military said the Christmas Eve strikes consisted of fighter jet-launched missiles that struck buildings “adjacent” to their intended targets.
The military said it “regrets the harm to uninvolved individuals, and is working to draw lessons from the incident.”
“A preliminary investigation revealed that additional buildings near the targets were also hit during the strikes, which likely caused unintended harm to additional uninvolved civilians,” the military said.
The Gaza Health Ministry said the two strikes killed at least 70 people.
International pressure for a cease-fire in the war has continued to rise through the holidays, with Pope Francis re-upping his calls to stop warfare in a Christmas address.
“I plead for an end to the military operations with their appalling harvest of innocent civilian victims and call for a solution to the desperate humanitarian situation by an opening to the provision of humanitarian aid. May there be an end to the fueling of violence and hatred,” he said.
While the Biden administration has refused calls for a cease-fire from allies abroad and rising dissent domestically, the U.S. government has pressed the Israeli military to draw back its military operations.
The Israeli government has shown few signs of heeding that advice, however. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said this week that the country’s war in Gaza will continue for a “long time,” despite warnings from the U.S. and others that a continued assault on Gaza could strengthen Hamas instead of defeat it.
