Israel Pulls Its Troops From Khan Younis, Residents And Gaza Rescue Team Reportedly Find 300 Bodies

Israeli military land operations in Gaza. (Source: Israel Defense Forces)

JAKARTA - Rescue teams and civilians in the Gaza Strip managed to find at least 300 bodies of Palestinians killed in Khan Younis, following the withdrawal of Israeli troops from the region on Tuesday.

Rescue teams indicated they received about 200 reports of missing persons to the east of Khan Younis, citing WAFA July 30.

They said they had evacuated 42 people killed from the city of Bani Suhaila, and were working to retrieve the rest of the civilians killed in the city after roads were closed, equivalent to 90 percent of infrastructure being destroyed.

Rescue teams confirmed Israeli forces prevented their crew from taking the injured victims, which ultimately led to death and decay of bodies, which became a violation of human rights.

Thousands of Palestinians returned to their homes in the ruins of Gaza's southern main city, Khan Younis, after Israeli forces ended a week-long attack there which they said was aimed at preventing Islamist Hamas armed groups from gathering again.

The Israeli military said its forces killed more than 150 Palestinian gunmen during the week-long attack, destroying militant tunnels and seizing weapons.

After Israeli troops left, people flowed back to their homes on foot and on trains carrying their belongings. Many found their houses damaged or destroyed. Hamas media office said more than 300 houses were shot by Israeli fire during the raid. About 30 of them were inhabited when attacked.

Witnesses said Isral forces had destroyed the main cemetery in Bani Suhaila, a city on the eastern outskirts of Khan Younis that became the main focus of the raid, as well as nearby houses and streets.

The latest conflict in Gaza broke out on October 7, 2023, when a Palestinian militant group led by Hamas attacked Israel's southern region. It reportedly killed 1,200 people, mostly civilians, while 250 other Israelis were arrested as hostages.

Yesterday, Gaza's medical authorities confirmed that the death toll of Palestinians as a result of Israeli attacks since the conflict broke out had reached 39,400 people and 90,996 others were injured. The majority of victims were women and children.