Israeli airstrike on Gaza convoy fleeing south on route approved by IDF kills up to 70 – including women and children as young as two

An Israeli airstrike on a Palestinian convoy leaving northern Gaza on a route said to have been approved by the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) killed up to 70 people, the Hamas-run Palestinian health ministry said.

Women and children aged two to five were among the dead after an attack hit a Palestinian convoy of vehicles leaving northern Gaza for the south, a BBC report said.

The IDF had allowed 1.1 million civilians just 24 hours to escape to the south of the territory, a deadline that expired at 03:00 BST. It then said today that Gazans could safely escape via two main roads between 10:00 and 16:00 local time (08:00 – 14:00 BST).

Many Palestinians are trying to escape areas targeted by the Israeli military as they face a growing water crisis after Israel cut off the flow of resources to the region.

The reports emerged yesterday afternoon along with video of the destruction of the scene after the strike.

An Israeli airstrike on a Palestinian convoy leaving northern Gaza on a route said to have been approved by the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) killed around 70 people, the Hamas-run Palestinian health ministry said.

of BBC The Verify service said it confirmed the attack took place on the Salah-al-Din road, which is one of two evacuation routes from northern Gaza to the south.

Hamas terrorists have urged civilians to ignore the evacuation order and some are refusing to leave, with Mahmoud Shalabi, director of Palestinian Medical Aid, saying “no place was safe in Gaza” and he hoped to “die with dignity”.

The BBC identified at least 12 bodies in the footage, mostly women and children – some of whom appear to be aged between two and five.

As Gazans fled the north yesterday after Israel issued an evacuation order, the road was jammed with traffic.

The BBC report said the video was likely filmed around 5.30pm local time due to shadows being cast.

Most of the people killed in the strike can be seen crumpled and lying on the back of a flatbed truck surrounded by pools of blood – while other victims lay dead around the road. Other cars destroyed in the strike are also seen.

As a group of men ran to a truck, some climbed aboard while others filmed the scene. Prayers and cries for the victims of the strike were shouted by people at the scene as smoke filled the air.

The body of a child – who the BBC says is likely to be no more than four years old – is then seen in the footage.

The Palestinian health ministry said 70 people were killed at the scene and blamed Israel for the attack, the BBC reports.

BBC Verify later said they had confirmed another video of a Palestinian convoy leaving northern Gaza near the site of the attack.

The report said more than 30 people were in the vehicle, which was filmed before the strike – likely between 3.30pm and 5.20pm local time yesterday.

Sky News asked IDF Lt. Col. Peter Lerner for comment, who said: “I am not aware of any IDF strikes at this time in that location, but we will update throughout the day.”

When he was pressed on what he would say if it was proved that Israel was responsible for the attack, he made it clear that the facts must be established first, saying it was possible that Hamas could ‘do it on its own’.

He said: “We need to be very clear about what exactly happened and we also need to be aware that Hamas is blocking the roads.

“They can do it themselves. Who knows? We don’t.

“We have to be very, very careful about judging before we know the facts.”