GAZA, May 19 (Xinhua) -- At least seven Palestinians, including a field commander, were killed on Monday during an Israeli military operation in the southern Gaza Strip city of Khan Younis, according to local and medical sources.
The sources told Xinhua that an Israeli special force disguised in civilian clothing infiltrated the al-Katiba neighborhood in the city and killed Ahmed Sarhan, a commander of the Nasser Salah al-Din Brigades affiliated with the Popular Resistance Committees, a loose grouping of armed factions in Gaza and the West Bank.
The sources said the force detained Sarhan's wife and children before withdrawing from the area.
Medical officials at Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis confirmed receiving the bodies of seven victims, including Sarhan, who were killed in a series of air and artillery strikes during the Israeli operation.
Local residents told Xinhua separately that Israeli warplanes and helicopters launched over 30 strikes targeting several locations, including Al-Qarara, Al-Fukhari, and Bani Suheila areas, as well as the surroundings of Al-Aqsa University and Street 5.
They said that one of the airstrikes hit a security facility within the Nasser Medical Complex, resulting in material damage and causing distress among medical staff and patients.
Due to the limited availability of ambulances and medical supplies, residents used carts and civilian vehicles to transport the injured.
In a press statement on Monday, the Israeli army said it struck over 160 targets across Gaza in the past hours in coordinated operations, adding that infrastructure linked to Palestinian armed groups, including launch sites, military facilities, and tunnel routes, had been attacked.
The army stated that the operations aimed to reduce the military capabilities of these factions and prevent future attacks against Israeli territory.
Israel has been carrying out military operations in Gaza for more than 19 months, employing special units and intelligence measures in targeting sites associated with Palestinian factions. The prolonged Israeli offensive has so far killed 53,475 Palestinians and injured 121,398 others in Gaza, local health authorities reported on Monday. ■
