Israel bombs café during children’s birthday party in Gaza — 39 killed

Israel has bombed a café, a school and food distribution sites in Gaza, killing at least 95 Palestinians.  

In the deadliest single strike of the day, Israeli fighter jets bombed an internet café with a children’s birthday party underway, killing at least 39 people in Northern Gaza City on Monday.

The internet café in Gaza, also frequented by journalists, was targeted by the Israeli military, killing Palestinian photojournalist Ismail Abu Hatab.

Journalists killed

At least 227 journalists have been killed in Gaza since 7 October 2023, according to the UN Human Rights Office, and it remains the deadliest place in the world to be a journalist.

The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) and Reporters without Borders both allege that Israel is directly targeting journalists in Gaza.

Israel has continued to pursue its offensive across the Palestinian enclave in a bid to destroy Hamas.

There were hopes that the swift resolution of Israel’s 12-day war with Iran would halt Tel Aviv’s attacks on Gaza.

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Two years of war

However, after nearly two years of war, Israel is no closer to eradicating Hamas, but rather creating dire humanitarian conditions for the population of nearly two million Palestinians.

US President Donald Trump has urged Israel to make a deal with Gaza.

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt says Trump and administration officials are in constant communication with Israeli leaders, and bringing an end to the war in Gaza is a priority.

“It’s heartbreaking to see the images that have come out from both Israel and Gaza throughout this war, and the president wants to see it end. He wants to save lives,” Leavitt said.

Israel attacks

Israel launched its military campaign in Gaza in response to Hamas’s attack on 7 October 2023, in which about 1 200 Israelis were killed.

This is a stark contrast to the number of Palestinians, which is a shocking number that stands at more than 55,000, mostly women and children, who have been killed.

While Trump will host Netanyahu for talks at the White House next Monday, Israeli Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer – a close ally of Netanyahu – is in Washington, DC this week for discussions with senior officials on a Gaza ceasefire, Iran, and other matters.

ICJ case

Last week, President Cyril Ramaphosa’s spokesperson, Vincent Magwenya, defended South Africa’s International Court of Justice (ICJ) case against Israel after an attack on a school in Gaza.

Charred remains of Palestinian women and children were pulled from under the rubble in Gaza on Friday after the Israeli army bombed the Osama Bin Zaid School, packed with displaced families.

At least eight people were killed when an Israeli airstrike hit the Osama Bin Zaid School, which had been sheltering displaced families in the Saftawi area of northern Gaza’s Jabalia.

Magwenya dismissed those who questioned why South Africa had taken Israel to the ICJ after the attack on the school.

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