Israel Kills at Least 21 Palestinians in Gaza in One of Deadliest Days Since Ceasefire

At least 21 Palestinians were killed across Gaza on Wednesday in strikes and shootings, medical sources and local hospitals said.

“Shelling kills 14 Palestinians in north, attacks on tents kill six in south as medical evacuations through Rafah crossing suspended”

Al Jazeera

Sources described the day as one of the deadliest since a U.S.-brokered ceasefire began nearly four months ago.

Al Jazeera

Al Jazeera reported that at least 21 Palestinians were killed across the Gaza Strip on Wednesday, citing medical sources.

Middle East Eye said the strikes and shootings killed at least 21 Palestinians, including three children.

El País reported that Israeli strikes since early Wednesday killed at least 21 Palestinians, including six minors, one a five-month-old.

Israeli outlets gave slightly lower counts; Haaretz said strikes killed about 20 people, including several children.

Reports consistently say homes and tent camps were hit and that civilians, including paramedics and children, were among the dead.

Reports describe Israeli tank shells and airstrikes hitting residential neighbourhoods and tents sheltering displaced people.

Al Jazeera named the Tuffah and Zeitoun neighbourhoods and tent camps in Qizan Abu Rashwan and al-Mawasi as among the sites hit.

Al-Jazeera Net

Witnesses and medical sources said several children and a paramedic were among the dead.

Al Jazeera said the shelling killed at least 14 people, including several children, and struck tents sheltering displaced people in Qizan Abu Rashwan and al-Mawasi.

Middle East Eye and The Guardian described tents in al-Mawasi and other displaced-persons encampments shredded by strikes and said homes were hit without warning.

Siasat and Daijiworld reported large family losses and paramedic deaths in Tuffah.

The Palestinian Red Crescent, medical authorities and multiple outlets reported that Israel cancelled coordination for patient evacuations through the Rafah crossing after the attacks, leaving sick and wounded Palestinians waiting in ambulances and hospitals.

“Israeli tank fire and airstrikes killed 18 people, including four children, in Gaza on Wednesday, Palestinian health officials said”

AL-Monitor

Al Jazeera said the Palestine Red Crescent reported Israel cancelled coordination for a third group of sick and wounded Palestinians to be evacuated through Rafah, while Israel's COGAT said the WHO had not provided the required coordination details.

Middle East Eye and RTE similarly reported cancellations and confusion.

Al-Monitor said Palestinian health officials reported halted evacuations, while COGAT insisted the Rafah crossing remained open but lacked WHO coordination details.

Coverage diverges sharply on the broader scale of killing since the October 2023 hostilities and the characterization of Israel’s conduct.

Palestinian health authorities and several West Asian outlets describe a massive toll and use the term genocide for the two‑year campaign they say the ceasefire aimed to halt.

AnewZ

Tehran Times said the ceasefire paused a two‑year genocide in Gaza that it said had killed roughly 71,000 Palestinians.

Al‑Jazeera Net reported about 72,000 Palestinians killed and more than 171,000 wounded, and described the war as initiated by Israel.

Middle East Eye and ARN News Centre cited Gaza health ministry figures of at least 529 killed since the ceasefire and about 1,500 wounded.

Western mainstream outlets such as The Guardian and El País reported hospital tallies of more than 556 fatalities since the ceasefire and noted unresolved political issues tied to the truce.

Israeli and some Western-alternative sources also note Israeli casualties from militant attacks, with Israeli tallies putting the Oct. 7 attack deaths at roughly 1,200 and reporting several soldiers killed since the ceasefire began.

Different outlets place emphasis on legal and political consequences in contrasting ways.

“Wednesday, 4 February 2026 15:34 By Reuters Israeli tank shelling and airstrikes killed 21 Palestinians including six children in Gaza on Wednesday, health officials said, the latest violence to undermine a truce in the enclave”

ARN News Centre

Al Jazeera notes that rights groups and a UN inquiry have described Israeli actions in Gaza as genocide and that a case is pending against Israel at the International Court of Justice.

AsiaOne

The Tehran Times accuses Israel of repeatedly violating the ceasefire with dozens of air strikes and calls that conduct part of a two‑year genocide.

Haaretz, an Israeli source, focuses on internal Israeli developments, reporting an IDF reserve officer was wounded, arrests and smuggling charges.

Haaretz also quotes Defense Minister Israel Katz saying Israel will dismantle Hamas and fully demilitarize Gaza if Hamas refuses to disarm.

Western mainstream outlets, including The Guardian and El País, stress the fragile truce's disputed second phase and the halted evacuations at Rafah.

These differences show divergent priorities.

West Asian outlets emphasize humanitarian catastrophe and genocide allegations; Israeli media highlight security and domestic legal actions; and Western mainstream coverage centers on the fragile politics of the truce and operational developments.