Israel carried out its most intense bombardment of the Gaza Strip in weeks on 9 July, with warplanes, drones and artillery striking residential districts and displacement camps from Gaza City to Khan Younis, Gaza Civil Defense said. At least 74 Palestinians were killed and dozens more wounded since dawn, the agency added, after repeated strikes on the Al-Tuffah and Al-Zaytoun neighbourhoods of Gaza City, Jabalia in the north and several sites in the south. Women and children were among the dead. Medical officials reported that an airstrike on tents sheltering displaced families in the Al-Mawasi area west of Khan Younis killed three children on top of earlier attacks that left four members of one family dead in the nearby refugee camp. Civil Defense officers said Israel dropped more than 20 bombs on Al-Tuffah within minutes, creating a “fire belt” that prevented rescue teams from reaching people trapped under collapsed buildings. The escalation in Gaza followed a series of Israeli drone strikes in southern Lebanon earlier in the week. Unmanned aircraft hit vehicles in Deir Kifa, Bait Lif and Al-Ayrouniye, while artillery shelled areas near Yaroun and Wazzani late on 9 July. No casualties were immediately reported across the border, but the attacks added to tension along the Israel-Lebanon frontier. Israel’s military had not issued a detailed public statement on the latest operations as of late Wednesday. The renewed violence comes after the breakdown of a March cease-fire and as humanitarian agencies warn that nearly two million displaced Palestinians have little shelter from continued airstrikes.