Air strike kills senior Hamas official in Gaza

An Israeli air strike in the southern city of Khan Younis in Gaza has killed top Hamas political leader Salah al-Bardaweel, a Hamas official told the BBC early on Sunday.

Locals say the air strike killed both Bardaweel, a member of the group’s political office, and his wife.

Israeli officials had no immediate comment.

Israel’s military resumed significant strikes on Gaza on Tuesday, blaming Hamas, abandoning a ceasefire agreement that began on 19 January and ended almost two months of calm.

Hamas rejected the Israeli accusations and, in turn, accused Israel of violating the ceasefire agreement that was signed and brokered by Qatar, Egypt and the US.

An official in the Hamas-run health ministry said 32 Palestinians had been killed over the past 24 hours across various parts of the Gaza Strip.

In a statement, Hamas said Bardaweel had been praying along with his wife when an Israeli missile struck their tent, according to Reuters news agency.

The Israeli military launched a campaign to destroy Hamas in response to an unprecedented cross-border attack on 7 October 2023, in which about 1,200 people were killed and 251 were taken hostage.

More than 49,500 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza since then, the Hamas-run health ministry says, and there is large-scale destruction to homes and infrastructure in the Strip.