Israeli strikes demolish Gaza neighbourhoods as power plant runs out of fuel

As Palestinians crowded into UN schools and a shrinking number of safe neighbourhoods, humanitarian groups pleaded for the creation of corridors to get aid in

Fire and smoke rise following an Israeli airstrike in Gaza City (Hatem Moussa/AP)

Palestinians in the sealed-off Gaza Strip struggled to find any safe area on Wednesday, as Israeli strikes demolished entire neighbourhoods, hospitals ran low on supplies and the territory’s only power plant ran out of fuel, deepening the misery of a war sparked by a deadly assault by Hamas militants.

Airstrikes smashed entire city blocks to rubble in the tiny coastal enclave and left unknown numbers of bodies beneath mounds of debris.