Israeli forces demolished houses in eastern areas of Gaza city overnight, killing at least 11 people in aerial and tank fire, local health authorities said, as the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas told mediators it was ready to resume ceasefire talks.
Residents and medics said eight people were killed when Israeli tank shelling hit a house in the Zeitoun neighbourhood, while a man was killed in an air strike on a building in the nearby Shejaia suburb. Two other people were killed in tank shelling in Tuffah, another Gaza city suburb.
Local health authorities said they had received desperate calls from families trapped in the Zeitoun area, including from people saying they were wounded, and that ambulance vehicles could not reach them.
“The explosions are almost non-stop in eastern Gaza areas, mainly Zeitoun and Shejaia. The occupation [Israel] is erasing homes there, as we hear from some friends who live nearby,” said Ismail (40), from Gaza city.
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“At night, we pray for our safety as the sounds of explosions get louder and closer. We hope Egypt can secure a ceasefire deal before we are all dead,” he told Reuters via a chat app.
[ Israel imposes extra restrictions on efforts to feed Gazan civiliansOpens in new window ]
More than 22 months into Israel’s military offensive in Gaza, residents have also been grappling with a worsening hunger crisis.
Four more people died of starvation and malnutrition in the territory in the past 24 hours, Gaza’s health ministry said on Thursday. That took the total to 239, including 106 children, since the war began, it said.
Israel disputes malnutrition and hunger figures reported by the health ministry in Gaza, which Hamas took control of in 2007.
Israel’s planned seizure of Gaza city – which it captured in the early days of the war before withdrawing – is probably weeks away, officials say.
[ Death toll mounts as Israel pounds Gaza city before planned seizureOpens in new window ]
In an effort to avert the planned military escalation, Egypt has been trying to revive a push for a ceasefire in Gaza, hosting a Hamas delegation led by the group’s chief negotiator Khalil al-Hayya.
He told mediators in Cairo on Wednesday that Hamas was ready to resume ceasefire talks to achieve a temporary truce, and was open to discussing a comprehensive agreement that would end the war, Egyptian and Palestinian sources said.
Israeli officials said on Thursday that the head of the country’s Mossad spy agency, David Barne, is visiting Qatar to revive Gaza peace talks.
The latest round of indirect talks in Qatar ended in deadlock in late July with Israel and Hamas trading blame over the lack of progress on a US proposal for a 60-day truce and hostage release deal.
Gaps between the sides appear to remain wide on key issues, including the extent of any Israeli military withdrawal and demands for Hamas to disarm.
[ Israeli hostages not a priority for ministers planning Gaza takeoverOpens in new window ]
Also on Thursday, Israeli far-right finance minister Bezalel Smotrich announced plans to commence work on a long-delayed settlement that would divide the West Bank and isolate it from East Jerusalem, a move his office stated would “bury” the idea of a Palestinian state. – Reuters
