Israeli strikes on Gaza kill 31 Palestinians on Sunday

As many as 31 Palestinians, mostly women and children, have been killed in a single day in the latest Israeli air and sea strikes on the besieged Gaza Strip, which has been under an Israeli blockade for the past five years.

Gaza Health Ministry officials said the Israeli attacks on Sunday killed 31 people, among them nine members of a family, five of them children, who were martyred when an Israeli missile destroyed their home in Gaza City.

Israeli airstrikes, shelling, and artillery fire have left 79 Palestinians dead and over 700 others injured since November 14. Some of the injured are in critical condition.

According to news reports, Morocco announced plans for setting up a field hospital in Gaza as part of efforts to help the Palestinians injured in Israeli airstrikes.

Israel conducted more than 130 aerial and sea attacks against the Gaza Strip on Sunday and Israeli naval gunboats fired shells and rockets on the Strip.

Earlier in the day, an explosion was heard in Israeli resort of Eilat, situated at the northern tip of the Red Sea, according to Israeli police officials.

In the meantime, the truce negotiations in Cairo to put an end to Tel Aviv’s aggression against the Palestinians failed as the Israeli cabinet announced it was not interested in de-escalation of violence against the Gaza Strip.

The Israeli military frequently carried out airstrikes and other attacks on the Gaza Strip, saying the actions are being conducted for defensive purposes. However, disproportionate force is always used, in violation of international law, and civilians are often killed or injured.

Gaza has been blockaded since June 2007, a situation that has caused a decline in the standard of living, unprecedented levels of unemployment, and unrelenting poverty.

The apartheid regime of Israel denies about 1.7 million people in Gaza their basic rights, such as freedom of movement, jobs that pay proper wages, and adequate healthcare and education.