Israeli strikes kill 14 in Gaza and destroy heavy equipment needed to clear rubble

DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip — Israeli strikes on the Gaza Strip killed at least 17 Palestinians, mostly women and children, and destroyed bulldozers and other heavy equipment that had been supplied by mediators to clear rubble. Separate strikes killed two people in Lebanon.

Also on Tuesday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Trump spoke by phone, two weeks after the two met in Washington. Trump wrote on his social networking site Truth Social that the two spoke about trade and Iran, among other issues. ''The call went very well—We are on the same side of every issue,'' he wrote.

Netanyahu's office did not have an immediate comment, but his hastily-arranged visit to Washington was not deemed a rousing success after he appeared to fail to secure the support he wanted from Trump on issues such as stopping Iran from developing nuclear weapons, reducing Trump's tariffs, the influence of Turkey and the war in Gaza.

Israel's 18-month offensive against Hamas has destroyed vast areas of Gaza, raising fears that much of it may never be rebuilt. The territory already had a shortage of heavy equipment, which is also needed to rescue people from the rubble after Israeli strikes and to clear vital roads.

The Israeli military said it struck and destroyed around 40 pieces of heavy machinery. Israel said Hamas used the vehicles, including bulldozers, for planting explosives, digging tunnels, and breaching fences, including during the Oct. 7, 2023 attack.

A municipality in the Jabaliya area of northern Gaza said a strike on its parking garage destroyed nine bulldozers provided by Egypt and Qatar, which helped broker the ceasefire that took hold in January. Israel ended the truce last month, renewing its bombardment and ground operations and sealing the territory's 2 million Palestinians off from all imports, including food, fuel and medical supplies.

The strikes also destroyed a water tanker and a mobile generator provided by aid groups, and a truck used to pump sewage, the Jabaliya al-Nazla municipality said.

Israeli strikes kill 17, mostly children

An Israeli airstrike early Tuesday destroyed a multistory home in the southern city of Khan Younis, killing nine people, including four women and four children, according to Nasser Hospital, which received the bodies. The dead included a 2-year-old girl and her parents.

''They were asleep, sleeping in God's peace. They had nothing to do with anything,'' said Awad Dahliz, the slain girl's grandfather. ''What is the fault of this innocent child?"

Also on Tuesday, a strike in the built-up Jabaliya refugee camp killed three children and their parents, and a strike in Nuseirat killed a man and two children, according to the Gaza Health Ministry's emergency service and local hospitals.

The Israeli military did not have immediate comment on the strikes, but has accused Hamas of using civilian infrastructure for militant purposes.

Israel's air and ground war has killed over 51,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children, according to the ministry, which does not say how many of the dead were civilians or combatants. Israel says it has killed around 20,000 militants, without providing evidence.

The war began when Hamas-led militants attacked southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and taking 251 people hostage. They are still holding 59 hostages, 24 of whom are believed to be alive, after most of the rest were released in ceasefire agreements or other deals.

Hamas has said it will only free the remaining hostages in return for the release of Palestinian prisoners, a full Israeli withdrawal and a lasting ceasefire. Israel has said it will keep fighting until the hostages are returned and Hamas has been either destroyed or disarmed and sent into exile. It has pledged to hold onto so-called security zones in Gaza indefinitely.

Islamist killed in Lebanon

An Israeli drone strike southeast of Beirut killed Hussein Atwi, a member of the Lebanese branch of the Muslim Brotherhood, a regionwide Sunni Islamist political movement. The group said he was leaving for work when the drone struck.

Lebanon's Health Ministry said another person was killed in an Israeli strike on the southern Tyre province, without providing further details. Israel said that its air force carried out the strike near Tyre and targeted a militant commander.

Israel has continued to carry out regular strikes across Lebanon despite reaching a ceasefire with the Hezbollah militant group in November. Israel says it is targeting militants and weapons caches. The Lebanese government says 190 people have been killed and 485 wounded since the ceasefire took hold.

Hezbollah began firing on Israel the day after Hamas' Oct. 7 attack. Israel responded with airstrikes, and the conflict in Lebanon escalated into a full-blown war in September when Israel carried out a heavy wave of strikes and killed most of Hezbollah's top leadership.

Palestinian militants arrested in Syria

The Palestinian Islamic Jihad group said two of its senior members were arrested in Syria ''without any explanation.'' The Syrian government has not commented.

Islamic Jihad, a smaller militant group allied with Hamas and also backed by Iran, had an established presence in Syria during the rule of former President Bashar Assad. It sent fighters to Lebanon to support Hezbollah during the war with Israel.

The arrests came days after Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas visited Damascus and met with Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa. It was Abbas' first visit to Syria since before the 2011 uprising and the civil war that eventually led to Assad's overthrow last year.

Abbas leads the Western-backed Palestinian Authority, dominated by political rivals of Hamas.

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Magdy reported from Cairo. Associated Press writer Sally Abou AlJoud in Beirut contributed.

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