The Palestinian death toll from last weekend's “Israeli” strikes on the besieged Gaza enclave has risen to 48 after an 11-year-old girl and a man died from wounds they suffered during the worst “Israeli” aggression in over a year.
The death of 10-year-old Layan al Shaer at Mukassed Hospital in an Arab neighbourhood of occupied Jerusalem on Thursday brought the number of children killed in the “Israeli” attacks to 17.
Hani al-Shaer, a relative, said she was wounded in a drone attack when “Israel” launched a surprise attack hours before any rockets were fired from Gaza.
Palestinian Red Crescent handed her body to Gaza, where she was buried.
In all, more than 300 Palestinians were wounded over the weekend when “Israel” struck Gaza and Islamic Jihad group there fired hundreds of rockets in retaliation.
On Thursday, two wounded Gaza children, aged 8 and 14, were fighting for their lives in a Jerusalem hospital.
Children, 14-year-old Nayef al Awdat and 8-year-old Mohammed Abu Ktaifa were being treated in the intensive care unit at Mukassed.
Nayef, who is blind, was wounded in an “Israeli” air strike, while Mohammed was injured in an explosion that went off near a wedding party and killed an elderly woman, with the circumstances still unclear.
An eventual ceasefire took hold on Sunday night, bringing an end to “Israeli” aggression and counter-rocket strikes that started on Friday.
No “Israelis” were killed but around 70 were wounded, according to UN.
Palestinian prisoner on hunger strike
In other developments, a Palestinian prisoner on a protracted hunger strike was moved on Thursday from an “Israeli” jail to a hospital because of his worsening condition, the prisoner’s wife said.
An “Israeli” prison service official confirmed the development, speaking on the condition of anonymity under regulations.
Khalil Awawdeh has refused food for just over 160 days, according to his family, in a bid to draw attention to his detention by Israel without trial or charge. His case was thrust into the spotlight during the latest aggression on Gaza.
Awawdeh, a 40-year-old father of four, was arrested by “Israel” in December, accused of being a member of a resistance group, a charge his lawyer said he denies. Recently, he has been using a wheelchair and was showing memory loss and speech difficulties, according to his lawyer, Ahlam Haddad.
Dalal Awawdeh, Khalil’s wife, said his condition had deteriorated, prompting “Israeli” authorities to move him to a hospital.
The worsening conditions of hunger-striking prisoners have in the past whipped up tensions with Palestine, and in some cases prompted Israel to accede to hunger strikers' demands.
Source: agencies
