Airstrikes hit camps in central Gaza as Biden administration approves new weapons sales to Israel

New Delhi: Amid persistent international calls for a ceasefire, Israeli warplanes targeted two urban refugee camps in central Gaza on Saturday after the Biden administration approved a new emergency weapons sale to the country, news agency AP reported. The United States has been providing diplomatic support to Israel and continues to supply weapons. Although the Biden administration has been urging Israel to minimise Palestinian civilian casualties, it shares the view that ending the war now would mean victory for Hamas.

The two urban refugee camps were Nuseirat and Bureij.

Speaking to the news agency, a senior Hamas official in Beirut said that the group has not changed its stance that a permanent ceasefire has to be the starting point for any further release of Israeli and foreign hostages, a demand that the Israel is bound to reject.

According to the Health Ministry in Gaza, the Palestinian death toll since the beginning of the war has reached 21,672 and as many as 56,165 people have been injured. A total of 165 people were killed in the last 24 hours, ministry spokesman Ashraf al-Qidra said, AP reported.