Israeli strikes kill 12 in Gaza including children as war grinds into the new year

DEIR AL BALAH, Gaza Strip —  Israeli strikes killed at least 12 Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, mostly women and children, officials said Wednesday, as the nearly 15-month Israel-Hamas war ground on into the new year.

One strike hit a home in the Jabaliya area of northern Gaza, the most isolated and heavily damaged part of the territory, where Israel has waged a major operation since early October. Gaza’s Health Ministry said seven people were killed, including a woman and four children. Israel’s military said it “eliminated” Hamas fighters.

Another strike overnight in the built-up Bureij refugee camp in central Gaza killed a woman and a child, according to Al Aqsa Martyrs Hospital, which received the bodies.

“Are you celebrating? Enjoy as we die. For a year and a half, we have been dying,” said a man carrying the body of a child in the flashing lights of emergency vehicles.

Israel’s military said militants fired rockets at Israel from the Bureij area overnight and that its forces responded with a strike targeting a militant.

A third strike in the southern city of Khan Yunis killed three people, according to Nasser Hospital and the European Hospital, which received the bodies.

The war began when Hamas-led militants attacked southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people and abducting around 250. About 100 hostages are still held in Gaza, at least a third believed to be dead.

Defense Minister Israel Katz warned in a statement Wednesday that Hamas will “suffer blows of a magnitude not seen in Gaza for a long time” if it doesn’t soon release the remaining hostages and stop firing at Israel.

Israel’s air and ground attacks have killed more than 45,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry. Its figures do not differentiate between militants and civilians but it says women and children make up more than half the dead.

The Israeli military blames Hamas for civilian deaths because its fighters operate in dense residential areas. The army says it has killed 17,000 militants, but it has not provided evidence.

The war has caused widespread destruction and displaced some 90% of Gaza’s population of 2.3 million, many of them multiple times.

Hundreds of thousands live in tents on the coast as winter brings frequent rainstorms and temperatures drop below 50 degrees at night. At least six infants and another person have died of hypothermia, according to the Health Ministry.

Many displaced Palestinians in central Gaza rely on charity kitchens as their sole food provider amid restrictions on aid and skyrocketing prices. On New Year’s Day, a long line of children waited at the kitchen in Deir al Balah for rice, the only meal served.

“Some of those kitchens close because they don’t receive aid, and others distribute little amounts of food and it’s not enough,” said Umm Adham Shaheen, displaced from Gaza City.

American and Arab mediators have spent nearly a year trying to broker a cease-fire and hostage release, but those efforts have repeatedly stalled. Hamas has demanded a lasting truce, while Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed to keep fighting until “total victory.”

Former defense minister leaves parliament

Israel’s previous defense minister, Yoav Gallant, fired nearly two months ago amid disagreements with Netanyahu, resigned Wednesday from parliament, citing a proposed law that would uphold controversial exemptions from the military draft for ultra-Orthodox men.

Gallant called the proposed law “contrary to the needs of the military and to the security of the state. I cannot be a part of that.” Military service is compulsory for most Jews. Exemptions for ultra-Orthodox men to pursue studies has generated widespread resentment among the broader public.

Gallant’s surprise firing in November sparked protests across Israel. He and Netanyahu were at odds over the war, with Gallant pushing for a diplomatic deal that would bring back the hostages while Netanyahu wanted more military pressure on Hamas. Netanyahu replaced Gallant with Katz, a longtime loyalist.

In Wednesday’s address, Gallant said he would remain a member of Netanyahu’s Likud Party.

Israel sees net departure of citizens for a second year

More than 82,000 Israelis moved abroad in 2024 and 33,000 people immigrated to the country, Israel’s Central Bureau of Statistics said. An additional 23,000 Israelis returned after long periods abroad.

It was the second straight year of net departures, a rare occurrence in the history of the country that actively encourages Jewish immigration. Many Israelis, looking for a break from the war, have moved abroad, leading to concern about whether it will drive a “brain drain” in sectors like medicine and technology.

Last year, 15,000 fewer people immigrated to Israel than in 2023.

Shurafa and Magdy write for the Associated Press and reported from Deir al Balah and Cairo, respectively. AP writers Melanie Lidman in Tel Aviv and Tia Goldenberg in Jerusalem contributed to this report.