Dozens of Palestinians were killed in Gaza on Saturday in air strikes by Israel, Palestinian media said, after the U.S. urged Israel to scale down its military campaign and narrowly target Hamas leaders. With intense ground fighting across the narrow Gaza Strip and aid organisations warning of a humanitarian catastrophe, the United States has warned that Israel risks losing international support because of "indiscriminate" air strikes killing Palestinian civilians. Israel's military said on Friday it killed three hostages held by Hamas in Gaza after wrongly identifying them as a threat. The military said it had recovered the bodies of three other hostages killed by Hamas. "The Gaza Strip turned into a ball of fire overnight, we could hear explosions and gunshots echoing from all directions," Ahmed, 45, an electrician and father of six, told Reuters from a shelter in central Gaza.

Source: The Telegraph December 16, 2023 16:51 UTC