The incident took place on Thursday when Israeli forces targeted several areas in the region and caused mass casualties, according to the resident of the refugee camp, Al Jazeera’s Annealla Safdar reports.

The Israeli army had initially declared central Gaza a safer area, urging Palestinians to flee there from the north, including Gaza City, when it launched its air attacks. The area is now heavily overcrowded and following Thursday’s escalation, many are yet again trying to flee.

The resident added that snipers are stepping up attacks on civilians.

In one instance, a sniper shot dead a mother and her infant, “piercing the baby’s skull with a bullet”. The child fell out of the mother’s arms as both died, the resident said who witnessed these atrocities.