RAMALLAH, June 4 (Xinhua) -- Palestinian National Council Chairman Rawhi Fattouh on Thursday condemned Israel's bombing of residential apartments in the Gaza Strip, killing their inhabitants, as a "war crime."
At least nine Palestinians were killed and several others injured early Thursday in a series of Israeli airstrikes that targeted residential areas in Gaza City, according to medical sources and eyewitnesses.
Fattouh said in a statement that, "The massacres against civilians in Gaza constitute a full-fledged war crime, a crime of genocide, and organized terrorism perpetrated by the occupying power against a defenseless people."
He added that targeting families in their homes reveals "the criminal mentality of the occupation army, which boasts of killing women and children and continues its violations of international humanitarian law in blatant defiance of the will of the international community and all existing political and security understandings and commitments."
Fattouh urged the U.S. administration to stop the "aggression and restrain the occupation government," calling on the international community to take immediate and binding measures to put an end to "the crimes of mass killing and hold those responsible accountable before international justice."
The Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) said that "the international community's inaction and failure to take deterrent measures against the occupation is what encourages Netanyahu's government to continue these systematic attacks, which aim to resume the war of extermination and implement plans for forced displacement."
In a statement, the movement called on the guarantor states of the ceasefire agreement to "assume their responsibilities to stop the occupation's systematic crimes."
Israel has intensified its airstrikes across the enclave in recent weeks, targeting apartments, homes, and displacement tents, resulting in casualties and injuries.
Since the ceasefire between Hamas and Israel took effect in October 2025, Israeli attacks have killed 947 Palestinians, bringing the total death toll since October 7, 2023, to 72,956, according to Gaza-based health authorities on Thursday. ■
