<div><span style="font-size: 1rem;">China on Tuesday called on Israel to halt military operations in Gaza as soon as possible, a day after Israeli forces rescued two hostages from the Gaza Strip in a dramatic operation that also killed at least 74 Palestinians, according to Palestinian hospital officials.</span><br></div><div><br></div><div>The raid took place in Rafah, the city on the southern edge of the Gaza Strip where 1.4 million Palestinians have fled to escape fighting elsewhere in the Israel-Hamas war. Women and children were among those killed in the airstrikes, Palestinian officials said.</div><div><br></div><div>China's Foreign Ministry added in a brief statement on Tuesday that Israel should "do everything possible to avoid casualties among innocent civilians and prevent a more devastating humanitarian disaster in Rafah."</div><div><br></div><div>The Palestinian death toll from the war has surpassed 28,000 people, according to the Health Ministry in Gaza. A quarter of Gaza's residents are starving.</div><div><br></div><div>The war began with Hamas' assault into Israel on Oct. 7, in which militants killed about 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducted around 250. Israel says about 100 hostages remain in Hamas captivity, while Hamas is holding the remains of roughly 30 others who were either killed on Oct. 7 or died in captivity. Three hostages were mistakenly killed by the army after escaping their captors in December. - AP</div><div><br></div><div>bnbd24/fas</div>