Gaza building collapse: Rescue efforts end after 45 saved

Gaza rescuers wrapped up searches on Thursday in the rubble of a bomb-damaged building that collapsed a day earlier, where 21 people were killed and 45 rescued from under the rubble, a Palestinian official said.

Nearly a year since a ceasefire ended major fighting in Gaza, reconstruction of the devastated territory has yet to begin. Most buildings were completely destroyed by Israeli airstrikes or bulldozed by Israeli forces, and nearly all of the rest have suffered damage.

The population of more than 2 million lives confined to a third of the enclave's territory, mainly housed in makeshift tents or in overcrowded rooms in damaged buildings.

Bulldozers were at work at the site on Thursday, removing rubble to prepare the ground for tents, where survivors from among more than 110 people who had been living in the building could be housed. Residents sifted through the rubble picking up belongings, including food.

Mahmoud Basal, spokesperson for the Palestinian Civil Defence Service in Gaza, told Reuters there were eight children among the dead, and around half of the wounded were also children.

"We don't have the needed equipment. Despite that, rescue teams did a heroic job and rescued 45 people from under the rubble and moved them to hospitals for treatment," Basal told Reuters by phone from Gaza.

Palestinian and UN officials blame Israel's restrictions on Gaza for the lack of heavy machinery to clear rubble and rebuild homes. Israel says its curbs aim to keep equipment out of the hands of militants.

Palestinian authorities say more than 73,000 people were killed in Israel's assault on Gaza, which was launched after Hamas-led fighters killed 1,200 people in an attack on southern Israel in October 2023.

A US-brokered ceasefire agreed last year calls for eventual reconstruction of the territory, but there has been little progress while negotiators have failed to agree conditions for Hamas to disarm and Israel to withdraw its troops.