Turkey has condemned Israel’s operation to free its hostages in the Gaza Strip as a “barbaric attack” and accused Israel of war crimes.
“With this latest barbaric attack, Israel has added another to the list of war crimes it has committed in Gaza,” the Foreign Ministry in Ankara said on Sunday, without mentioning the hostages’ rescue.
On Saturday, the Israeli army freed four people kidnapped from Israel during the October 7 massacres. They were found in the center of the Gaza Strip after being held captive for eight months.
There were reportedly heavy airstrikes and artillery fire accompanying the rescue mission. Television images showed huge numbers of casualties and an overwhelmed hospital.
The Hamas media office said 210 Palestinians were killed and about 400 injured in Nuseirat, one of the locations where the operation took place. The information could not initially be independently verified.
The Israeli military said it was verifying the reports. Israeli army spokesman Daniel Hagari said there were fewer than 100 casualties.
The Hamas-controlled health authority and medical sources in the Gaza Strip previously spoke of 55 deaths.
A Palestinian man carries his injured little girl to Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital after simultaneous Israeli attacks on Nuseirat refugee camp, al-Bureij refugee camp and al-Maghazi refugee camp. Israeli special forces rescued four hostages from the Nuseirat refugee district in central Gaza Strip in broad daylight on Saturday after 246 days of captivity, the army said. Omar Naaman/dpa
Palestinians carry an injured man to Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital after simultaneous Israeli attacks on Nuseirat refugee camp, al-Bureij refugee camp and al-Maghazi refugee camp. Israeli special forces rescued four hostages from the Nuseirat refugee district in central Gaza Strip in broad daylight on Saturday after 246 days of captivity, the army said. Omar Naaman/dpa
Wounded Palestinians receive medical treatment at Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital following simultaneous Israeli attacks on Nuseirat refugee camp, al-Bureij refugee camp and al-Maghazi refugee camp. Israeli special forces rescued four hostages from the Nuseirat refugee district in central Gaza Strip in broad daylight on Saturday after 246 days of captivity, the army said. Omar Naaman/dpa
The body of a Palestinian girl, killed during simultaneous Israeli attacks on Nuseirat refugee camp, al-Bureij refugee camp and al-Maghazi refugee camp, arrives at Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in Deir al-Balah. Israeli special forces rescued four hostages from the Nuseirat refugee district in central Gaza Strip in broad daylight on Saturday after 246 days of captivity, the army said. Omar Naaman/dpa
