An Israeli raid on Gaza kills 76 members of the same family

An Israeli attack on a building in Gaza City killed 76 members of the same family, a Civil Defence spokesman in the besieged Strip announced.

The raid that took place on Friday is believed to be among the bloodiest in the war so far, according to civil defence spokesman Mahmoud Basal.

Among the victims were Issam Al-Maghrabi, a former employee of the United Nations Development Programme, his wife and their five children.

The agency confirmed in a statement that the 56-year-old man died alongside his 53-year-old wife, Lamia, and their children Muhammad (32), Saud (30), Lama (27), Louay (23), and Obaida (13).

The statement read: "For nearly 30 years, Issam worked with UNDP through our programme to Assist the Palestinian People. He will be remembered as a beloved member of the Program to Assist the Palestinian People. The loss of Issam and his family has deeply affected us all."

The United States has said that civilians in Gaza are not a target.

Late Friday evening, Israeli army spokesman Daniel Hagari said that the forces were expanding their ground offensive "to include additional areas in the Strip, with a focus on the south."

He added that operations are also continuing in the northern half of Gaza, including Gaza City, the centre of the Israeli ground offensive, and the army said on Saturday that it had carried out air strikes against Hamas fighters in several locations in the city.

More than 20,000 Palestinians were killed, and 53,000 were injured, according to health officials in the stricken Strip.