© Social mediaA horrific massacre was committed by Israeli occupation forces in Mawasi, east of Khan Yunis. Isreali missilesleft a crater 9 meters (30 ft) deep
The Israeli occupation army carried out a new massacre at dawn on Tuesday by targeting the tents of displaced Palestinians in Mawasi Khan Yunis, southwest of the besieged Gaza Strip, claiming the lives of scores of Palestinians, including women and children, and injuring many others.
The official news agency WAFA reported per medical sources that at least 40 Palestinians were killed and 60 others injured.
Search efforts are still underway to locate missing Palestinians.
"We are facing one of the most heinous massacres since the beginning of the Israeli aggression on the Gaza Strip, and (..) entire families disappeared in the sand due to the concussion missiles," the Palestinian Civil Defense was quoted by WAFA as saying.
Media reports stated that five missiles were fired during the attack that took place near the British Hospital at the entrance of the Mawasi area. The bombing has reportedly left holes nine meters deep into the ground, making it extremely difficult for rescue operations to take place, according to WAFA.
The Palestinian Red Crescent Society, along with eyewitness accounts, emphasized the tremendous challenges in recovering the bodies of dead and injured Palestinians "due to the massive destruction and deep holes," WAFA said.
The official news agency reported that the attack area was chaotic amid a complete power outage and fire emanating from the bombing site
with the omnipresent hovering of Israeli reconnaissance aircraft over the area.Israel admitted to the heinous massacre and justified it by saying that it targeted "a Hamas command center."
Hamas Debunks 'Blatant Lies'The Palestinian movement Hamas condemned the massacre in Mawasi Khan Yunis describing it as another "brutal act of genocide."
Hamas debunked the Israeli claims of the presence of its resistance fighters among civilian gatherings or the use of such areas for military purposes labeling the allegations as "blatant lies, meant to justify these heinous crimes."
"This brutal targeting of unarmed civilians — women, children, and the elderly — in an area previously declared safe by the occupation army is confirmation of the ongoing Nazi policies of the occupation government in its genocidal war against the Palestinian people," Hamas said in a statement.
The resistance movement added that these massacres are carried out in total disregard of international and humanitarian law and the full support of the American administration, accusing it of complicity in "the aggression against our people."
Hamas concluded its statement by asking the international community "to abandon their silence and impotence, assume their responsibility to stop this 11-month-long holocaust, and work to end this savage aggression," and "to bring Zionist war criminals before the International Criminal Court and hold them accountable for these heinous crimes."
Gaza's Ongoing GenocideFlouting a UN Security Council resolution demanding an immediate ceasefire, Israel has faced international condemnation amid its continued brutal offensive on Gaza.
Currently on trial before the International Court of Justice for genocide against Palestinians, Israel has been waging a devastating war on Gaza since October 7.
According to Gaza's Ministry of Health, 40,988 Palestinians have been killed, and 94,825 wounded in Israel's ongoing genocide in Gaza starting on October 7.
Moreover, at least 11,000 people are unaccounted for, presumed dead under the rubble of their homes throughout the Strip.
Israel says that 1,200 soldiers and civilians were killed during the Al-Aqsa Flood Operation on October 7. Israeli media published reports suggesting that many Israelis were killed on that day by 'friendly fire'.
Palestinian and international organizations say that the majority of those killed and wounded are women and children.
The Israeli war has resulted in an acute famine, mostly in northern Gaza, resulting in the death of many Palestinians, mostly children.
The Israeli aggression has also resulted in the forceful displacement of nearly two million people from all over the Gaza Strip, with the vast majority of the displaced forced into the densely crowded southern city of Rafah near the border with Egypt - in what has become Palestine's largest mass exodus since the 1948 Nakba.
Later in the war, hundreds of thousands of Palestinians began moving from the south to central Gaza
in a constant search for safety.
Comment: More from the massacre site: