Israel has said it is pressuring Hamas to agree to a temporary ceasefire on Israel’s terms — one that would free Israeli hostages held in Gaza but wouldn’t necessarily end the war.
Israel on Saturday launched extensive” new ground operations in the Gaza Strip as airstrikes in a new offensive killed at least 103 people, including dozens of children, overnight and into Sunday, hospitals and medics said, and forced northern Gaza’s main hospital to close. More than 48 people were killed in and around the Palestinian territory’s southern city of Khan Younis, some hitting houses and tents sheltering displaced people, according to Nasser Hospital, which said it struggled to count the dead because of the condition of the bodies. Eighteen children and 13 women were among them, spokesperson Weam Fares said.
In northern Gaza, a strike on a home in the built-up Jabaliya refugee camp killed nine members of a family, according to the Gaza Health Ministry’s emergency services.
Another strike on a residence in Jabaliya killed 10, including seven children and a woman, according to the civil defence, which operates under the Hamas-run government.
In Gaza City, Um Mahmoud al-Aloul lay across the shrouded body of her daughter, Nour al-Aloul. “You took my soul with you,” she cried. “I used to turn off my phone because of how much you called.”
Israel’s military had no immediate comment, but its statement announcing the ground operations said that preliminary strikes over the past week killed dozens of militants and struck more than 670 targets. Israel blames civilian casualties on Hamas because the militant group operates from civilian areas.
Israel launched the offensive Saturday with the aim of seizing territory, displacing hundreds of thousands of Palestinians to Gaza’s south and taking greater control of aid distribution.
An Israeli blockade on food, medicine and other supplies is now in its third month, with global food security experts warning of famine across the territory of more than 2 million people.
Israel has said it is pressuring Hamas to agree to a temporary ceasefire on Israel’s terms — one that would free Israeli hostages held in Gaza but wouldn’t necessarily end the war.
Hamas says it wants a full withdrawal of Israeli forces and a pathway to ending the war as part of any new ceasefire deal.
(With inputs from AP)
