Family of six among 44 killed as Israel airstrikes pound Gaza

Palestinians mourn during a funeral of relatives, killed in an Israeli strike on a school-turned-shelter, at the Al-Shifa hospital in Gaza City. (AFP)
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Updated 24 April 2025
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Family of six among 44 killed as Israel airstrikes pound Gaza

  • ‘We have had enough ... every day there’s death,’ says grieving sister

GAZA: Israeli attacks in Gaza on Thursday killed at least 44 more Palestinians, including a couple and their four children who died when an airstrike flattened their home in northern Gaza City.
The strike came as the family was sleeping, said Nidal Al-Sarafiti, a relative. “What can I say? The destruction has spared no one,” he said.
At least 10 people were killed in another strike on a former police station in the Jabaliya area of northern Gaza. “The bombing was extremely intense and it shook the entire area,” said survivor Abdel Qader Sabah, 23. “Everyone started running and screaming, not knowing what to do from the horror and severity of the bombing.”
Elsewhere at least 28 Palestinians were killed in a series of strikes across Gaza, including several in the southern area of Khan Younis. “We were sitting in peace when the missile fell,” said Mohammed Faris, who saw a strike on a house in the city. “I just don't understand ... what's happening.”
Bodies lay on the ground around him, including those of a young woman and a boy in body bags, surrounded by grieving relatives kissing and stroking their faces. “One by one we are ...  dying in pieces,” said Rania Al-Jumla, who lost her sister in another airstrike in Khan Younis. “We have had enough. Every day there’s death, every day we lose someone dear to us.”
The Durra Children’s Hospital in Gaza City was out of operation a day after an Israeli strike hit the upper part of the building, damaging the intensive care unit and destroying the solar power system. No one was killed.

Gaza’s health system has been devastated by Israel’s 18-month war, putting many of the enclave’s hospitals out of action, killing doctors and other medical staff, and blocking the delivery of crucial supplies.

Mediation efforts by Qatar and Egypt have ground to a halt after failing to deliver a sustainable truce between Israel and Hamas.


Syrian, Austrian officials discuss voluntary return of asylum seekers

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Syrian, Austrian officials discuss voluntary return of asylum seekers

  • Austria’s special envoy to the Middle East and senior Interior Ministry officials join talks
  • Since November 2024, Syrians make up the largest group of asylum seekers in Austria, with 12,871 applications recorded

LONDON: Syrian Interior Minister Anas Khattab met with an Austrian delegation in Damascus on Thursday to discuss cooperation on migration, border management, and the voluntary return of Syrian asylum seekers.

Austria’s special envoy to the Middle East, Ambassador Arad Benko, along with senior officials from Austria’s Interior Ministry, discussed asylum issues, the regulation of humanitarian movement, and ways to coordinate policies and procedures between the two countries.

The discussions also involved sharing expertise in border control, organizing asylum procedures, and facilitating voluntary returns, while cooperating to support security and stability in both countries, according to the Syrian Arab News Agency.

As of November 2024, Syrians make up the largest group of asylum seekers in Austria, with 12,871 applications recorded, the EuroMed Rights reported.