GAZA CITY, Palestine

At least 73 Palestinians were killed and dozens injured in Israeli airstrikes that targeted a residential bloc in the town of Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip, the Gaza Media Office said Saturday.

The army committed “a horrific massacre that has so far claimed the lives of 73 martyrs and left dozens injured and missing, the majority of whom are children and women, after bombing densely populated residential areas from the air,” it said in a statement.

“The Israeli occupation army continues its clear campaign of ethnic cleansing, extermination, and genocide, this time in the Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip,” it added.

For the 15th consecutive day, the Israeli army has continued its offensive in northern Gaza.​​​​​​​

Northern Gaza is under a suffocating siege and constant bombardment, with homes being demolished over their inhabitants.

Israel has continued a brutal offensive on Gaza following a cross-border attack by the Palestinian group, Hamas, on Oct. 7, 2023, despite a UN Security Council resolution calling for an immediate cease-fire.

More than 42,500 people have since been killed, mostly women and children, and nearly 99,700 injured, according to local health authorities.

The onslaught has displaced almost the entire population of Gaza amid an ongoing blockade that has led to severe shortages of food, clean water and medicine.

Israel faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its actions in Gaza.

*Writing by Rania Abu Shamala