Two more Palestinian bodies found after Israeli strikes

Two bodies were discovered under rubble in the Gaza Strip on Monday following a violent escalation with Israel, the health ministry in the enclave said, raising the number of Palestinians killed to 25.

Four Israelis were also killed in the two-day escalation that appeared to have ended Monday morning with an Egyptian-brokered ceasefire. It began on Saturday with rocket fire from the Hamas-run Gaza Strip, drawing waves of Israeli retaliatory strikes.

The Gaza ministry said in a statement, the bodies of two people “were found on Monday morning in the northern Gaza Strip.” It named them as Talal Abu al-Jidian, 48, and his wife Raghda Abu al-Jidian, 40.

A ministry spokesperson told AFP their bodies had been found under rubble where an Israeli strike occurred.

In total 25 Palestinians were killed in the escalation, according to the ministry.

Israel disputed the ministry’s account of the deaths of a pregnant woman and a baby, blaming errant fire from Hamas.