Gaza civil defence says Israeli strikes kill 9

Gaza's civil defence agency said Israeli strikes across the Palestinian territory on Friday killed at least nine people, including five in an attack that targeted a police vehicle.

Despite an October ceasefire, Gaza remains gripped by daily violence as Israeli strikes continue and both the Israeli military and Hamas accuse one another of breaking the truce.

Five people were killed and several others injured when an Israeli airstrike hit a police vehicle in the Al-Mawasi area of the southern city of Khan Yunis, said the civil defence agency, which operates as a rescue service under Hamas.

In a separate incident, two people -- a woman and a child -- were killed, and five others were injured when Israeli artillery struck residential homes near Kamal Adwan hospital in northern Gaza.

In a third attack, an Israeli aircraft struck another police patrol in Gaza City, the territory's largest urban centre, killing two people and injuring two others, it added.

Gaza's Al-Shifa and Nasser hospitals confirmed the deaths.

The Israeli military did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The October truce has largely halted the Gaza war that began after Hamas's October 7, 2023 attack.

But violence has persisted, with at least 792 Palestinians killed since the truce began, according to Gaza's health ministry, which is under Hamas authority and whose figures are considered reliable by the United Nations.

The Israeli military has reported five soldiers killed in Gaza since the start of the truce.

Media restrictions and limited access in Gaza have prevented AFP from independently verifying casualty figures or freely covering the fighting.