Israeli strikes on the southern Gaza city of Rafah overnight killed 22 people, including 18 children, health officials said Sunday, as the United States was on track to approve billions of dollars of additional military aid to Israel, its close ally.
Passover is a celebration of freedom for Jews, commemorating the exodus of ancient Israelites from slavery in Egypt. However, this year the Israel-Hamas war is making the mood more sombre.
Israeli forces killed 14 Palestinians during a raid in the occupied West Bank on Saturday, while an ambulance driver was killed as he went to pick up wounded from a separate attack by violent Jewish settlers, Palestinian authorities said.
The overnight attacks, which were confirmed by the defence ministry in Moscow, came amid a Russian airstrike campaign that has battered Ukraine's energy system and pounded its cities in recent weeks.
A leading member of the Ukrainian parliament delivered stark warnings to Canadian politicians and top defence officials this week in a series of mostly under-the-radar meetings in Ottawa ahead of the long-anticipated aid vote in the U.S. Congress.
