Four people were killed and about 30 others, including women and children, were wounded in a Gaza City blast Monday evening. According to one version, the explosion was a result of a terrorist “work accident,” but rumors circulating in Gaza said the blast was a result of an IDF air strike.
However, security officials here said Israel was not linked to the blast in the Sajaiya neighbourhood, known as a Hamas stronghold. “The Israeli army has no connection with this incident,” an IDF spokeswoman said.
Palestinian sources said one building was destroyed and at least 10 houses were set on fire as a result of the explosion. A spokesman for the Palestinian Interior Ministry, Tawfiq Abu Khoussa, said the explosion was “mysterious.”
“The security services will look into the circumstances of the explosion,” he said.
Palestinian security sources said Hamas terrorists lived in one of the houses hit by the explosion, which could be heard across Gaza City. The Sajaiya blast raised speculation among Palestinians in Gaza that explosives may have been stored in one of the buildings and gone off prematurely.
Notably, Israel has largely ceased assassinations of Palestinian terrorists since declaring a ceasefire along with Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas last February.
Reuters and AP contributed to the report
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