DAIR AL-BALA, Gaza Strip (AP) — Israeli shelling killed an 11-year-old girl whose family had returned to a designated safe zone Thursday, adding to more than 400 deaths reported since a ceasefire was reached to stop fighting in the Gaza Strip nearly three months ago, a relative said.
After shells and shrapnel hit her home in the Jabaliya area of northern Gaza, Hamsa Hossou was taken to Shifa Hospital, where she was pronounced dead. Outside the hospital's morgue, her uncle Khamis Khosu told The Associated Press that the family returned home on Oct. 11, the day after the ceasefire took effect.
Hosu, who said his niece dreamed of becoming a doctor, said he heard screams early Thursday morning as Israeli troops combed the area hit by shells and shrapnel. He ran from his apartment to the house where Hamsa lived and found her lying on the floor.
He took the girl to a nearby clinic, but discovered that the ambulance had a flat tire. They waited about 15 minutes before taking her to the hospital, where she was pronounced dead, he said.
“They say that there is a ceasefire and that the war in the Gaza Strip has stopped. Is this only through the media, while every day there are explosions and belts of fire?” he asked. “The shooting doesn't stop. Where is the ceasefire?”
Khamis Khusu said Fallujah, the Jabaliya area where the family lives, comes under daily shelling from Israeli forces despite being on the western side of the yellow ceasefire line.
The Israeli military did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
He has previously said that military action since the ceasefire began was a response to violations of the agreement.
At least 424 Palestinians have been killed in the nearly three months since the ceasefire took effect, Gaza's health ministry said on Tuesday, which does not differentiate between civilians and combatants.
The ministry, part of the Hamas-run government, maintains detailed casualty records that U.N. agencies and independent experts consider generally reliable. The total number of Palestinian deaths in the war between Israel and Hamas has risen to at least 71,391, with another 171,279 injured, the ministry said.
The agreement for a phased ceasefire remains in its early stages as efforts continue to recover the remains of the last hostage in Gaza. The Israel Hostage and Missing Families Forum said on Wednesday it had been notified that teams had resumed the search for Rana Gwili. The 24-year-old policeman was kidnapped on October 7, 2023, when Hamas-led militants kidnapped 251 people and killed about 1,200, mostly civilians, in an attack that sparked the war.
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Metz reported from Jerusalem. Bassem Mrou contributed reporting from Beirut.
