Israeli strike kills three in Gaza, medics say

By Nidal al-Mughrabi

CAIRO, April 24 (Reuters) - An Israeli strike killed at least three in Gaza on Friday, according to Palestinian health officials.

The strike hit a crowded area in Gaza city near an area where local police are stationed to guard a bank, said the medics and eyewitnesses.

Gaza's interior ministry said that the strike had targeted a police patrol, in a statement Friday.

Reuters has previously reported that Israel has heightened its attacks on Gaza's Hamas-run police force that the militant group has used to reestablish governance in the areas it controls in the strip.

It was not immediately clear whether any of Gaza's police force had been killed in the attack.

The Israeli military did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the incident.

Violence in Gaza has ​persisted ⁠despite the October 2025 ceasefire, with Israel conducting near-daily attacks on Palestinians.

At least 790 Palestinians have been killed ​since the ceasefire deal took ​effect, ⁠according to local medics, while Israel says militants have killed four of its soldiers.

Israel and Hamas have exchanged blame for ceasefire violations.

More than 72,000 Gazans have been killed since the war started in October 2023, most of them civilians, according to Gaza health authorities.

Hamas' October 7, 2023, attacks on Israel killed 1,200 people, according to Israeli tallies.

(Reporting by Nidal al-Mughrabi, Writing by Pesha Magid)