107 Palestinians dead after Gaza truce fails

At least 107 Palestinians were killed and an Israeli soldier was missing presumed captured as a fresh wave of violence swept through the Gaza Strip on Saturday following the failure of an agreed ceasefire. The attacks continued throughout the night, leaving at least 35 Palestinians dead in the Gaza town of Rafah alone in a series of Israeli air raids in the hours since midnight (2100 GMT) on Friday. The intensive fighting on Friday and early Saturday, which ensued after a planned three-day ceasefire, collapsed after just hours. The toll on the Palestinian side was 107 people dead and 350 others wounded, said Palestinian emergency services spokesman Acjraf al-Qodra. Fifteen of those victims, including five children aged 3-12, came from the same family whose house was destroyed, he added. Some 1,650 Palestinians, the vast majority of them civilians, have been killed in the 26 days since the present conflict started. On the Israeli side, 63 soldiers and three civilians have died, according to AFP.