At least 4 Palestinians killed in Israeli attacks across Gaza

At least four Palestinians were killed Thursday as Israeli airstrikes, artillery fire and gunfire struck several parts of Gaza. The incidents mattered because they came during an already fragile cease-fire, raising fresh doubts about whether the truce can hold. Several other people were wounded across the enclave.

The reported deaths occurred in Gaza City, near the northern Jabalia refugee camp, in Khan Younis and near the Nuseirat refugee camp in central Gaza. A drone struck a vehicle in Tel al-Hawa, killing a police officer, according to Gaza’s Interior Ministry. Another drone hit a motorcycle in Khan Younis. Gunfire killed a Palestinian near Jabalia, while a separate strike killed a man near Nuseirat.

Israeli artillery also hit a tent in a school courtyard in Khan Younis. A man, his wife and their two children were wounded. The Israeli military said it targeted Hamas militants in three locations, but disputed or could not reconcile some Palestinian casualty reports.

A cease-fire is an agreed pause or halt in fighting between opposing sides. It matters because it can reduce deaths, protect civilians and create space for negotiations. It does not automatically settle the underlying conflict. Its success depends on both sides following the agreed restrictions and resolving disputes over implementation.

The article says the U.S.-brokered Gaza agreement took effect on October 10, 2025. It was intended to pave the way for Gaza’s eventual reconstruction. The arrangement also envisioned further stages, but negotiations over those stages have made little progress. The article does not provide every provision of the agreement.

The cease-fire remains fragile because Palestinian authorities report continued Israeli airstrikes, artillery attacks and gunfire. Israel accuses Hamas of rebuilding military capabilities and violating the agreement. Hamas denies those claims and says Israel is undermining the truce. Disputes over disarmament and Israeli troop withdrawal have blocked a comprehensive next-stage arrangement.

The reported human toll is enormous at both time points. Since the cease-fire began, Palestinian authorities say Israeli attacks killed 1,538 Palestinians and wounded 5,498 others. These figures show that the truce has not stopped deadly violence, despite its stated purpose of reducing hostilities.

The longer-term figures are far higher. Since October 2023, Palestinian authorities say Israeli military operations have killed more than 74,000 Palestinians and wounded over 175,000 in Gaza. The article also reports that four Israeli soldiers have been killed since the cease-fire took effect. These figures describe different periods and should not be combined as if they measured the same interval.

The scale of the toll helps explain why continued attacks threaten more than the cease-fire itself. They also complicate efforts to restore essential services and rebuild infrastructure. The article presents the figures as reports from Palestinian authorities, while noting Israel’s separate accusations against Hamas and its account of military targets.

The different accounts reflect opposing views of the conflict and the cease-fire’s rules. Palestinian authorities describe airstrikes, artillery fire and gunfire as Israeli violations that continue during the truce. Israel says Hamas is rebuilding its military capabilities and carrying out attacks, making Israeli operations responses to security threats.

For example, Israel’s military said it targeted Hamas militants in Khan Younis, Nuseirat and Gaza City. Palestinian medical officials instead reported deaths and injuries, including a police officer killed in a vehicle strike and a man killed near Nuseirat. The military said it was unaware of the reported shooting near Jabalia, and its account could not be independently reconciled with Palestinian casualty reports.

Hamas denies trying to rearm or launch new attacks. It accuses Israel of undermining the cease-fire through continued military operations. Because the article reports competing claims and no independent reconciliation, responsibility for particular incidents remains disputed. Those disagreements make monitoring compliance and negotiating the next stage more difficult.

When attacks continue during a cease-fire, displaced families cannot rely on shelters as safe places. They may face shelling, gunfire and renewed displacement instead of protection. The article reports that a school sheltering displaced Palestinians in Khan Younis was hit, wounding four members of one family. Residential neighborhoods and tents also came under fire.

The key mechanism is repeated damage and insecurity. Israeli artillery hit a tent in the courtyard of Mustafa Hafez School. Witnesses reported gunfire near homes and tents east of Hamad City. In Gaza City, forces struck or demolished residential properties in Rimal, Nasr, Tuffah and Shujaiya. Such attacks can force families to move again and leave fewer usable buildings.

Reconstruction therefore becomes harder while fighting continues. The article says hostilities have complicated efforts to restore essential services and rebuild civilian infrastructure devastated during more than three years of war. Continued violence also threatens the cease-fire’s intended path toward Gaza’s reconstruction and delays agreement on what comes next.

Hamas’s disarmament and Israel’s withdrawal matter because they address the security and control questions at the center of the cease-fire’s next phase. The article says the agreement was meant to move toward reconstruction and later stages. Those stages require the sides to agree on what military forces and weapons remain in Gaza.

The mechanism is a deadlock between incompatible demands. Israel accuses Hamas of rebuilding its military capabilities and says Hamas has violated the agreement. Hamas denies seeking to rearm or launch attacks. At the same time, disagreements continue over the withdrawal of Israeli forces from the territory. Neither issue has been settled through negotiations.

The result is that the sides have not reached a comprehensive arrangement for the next stages. This uncertainty affects the cease-fire’s durability and delays reconstruction. It also complicates efforts to restore essential services and civilian infrastructure. Unless the core security and withdrawal disputes advance, the agreement’s intended transition remains stalled.

International humanitarian law requires parties to distinguish civilians and civilian objects from military targets. Civilians may not be directly attacked, and attacks may not be indiscriminate. Forces must take feasible precautions to reduce civilian harm and must not launch attacks expected to cause excessive civilian damage compared with the anticipated military advantage.

Homes, residential areas, schools and shelters are generally civilian objects. They remain protected unless used for military purposes and thereby become military objectives. Even then, legal limits still apply. Parties must verify targets, choose means and methods that reduce civilian harm, and provide warnings when feasible. These protections do not make every civilian casualty automatically unlawful, but they impose strict duties.

The article reports shelling at a school shelter, fire near residential buildings and tents, and demolitions of homes. It does not establish whether specific incidents violated international humanitarian law. Legal assessment would require reliable facts about targets, intent, precautions, proportionality and the circumstances of each attack.