At least 55 Palestinians killed in Israeli strikes on central Gaza: medical sources

GAZA -- At least 55 Palestinians were killed and dozens of others injured on Saturday in Israeli airstrikes on the Nuseirat camp and some other areas in the central Gaza Strip, according to medical sources.

Khalil Al-Dakran, director of Al-Aqsa Hospital in Deir Al-Balah in central Gaza, told Xinhua that a large number of wounded Palestinians were sent to the hospital due to the intense Israeli bombing on the Nuseirat camp and the city of Deir Al-Balah, some of whom have been confirmed dead.

Wounded Palestinians were still being sent in, overwhelming the hospital amid a severe shortage of beds, medicines, medical consumables, and fuel to run the main emergency generator, said Al-Dakran.

Palestinian eyewitnesses told Xinhua that Israeli aircraft targeted the area with intensive firepower, and local civil defense and ambulances were unable to reach some injured people in time.

Meanwhile, Palestinian security sources said deadly clashes broke out on the ground between Palestinian militants and Israeli troops raiding the Nuseirat camp under the cover of artillery and aerial bombardment.

The Israeli army, police, and intelligence body Shin Bet said in a joint statement that "our forces are attacking a terrorist structure" in the region and freed four Israeli hostages.

It noted that the kidnapped persons were rescued by Shin Bet fighters and the Special Police Unit from two separate areas in the heart of Nuseirat.

The statement confirmed that the health condition of the hostages was good, and they were transferred for medical examinations to Tel Hashomer Hospital in Israel.