Israeli strikes kill five at hospital, Gaza officials say, after abortive talks

By Nidal al-Mughrabi

CAIRO (Reuters) – An Israeli airstrike hit a tent inside a hospital compound in central Gaza, killing at least five people, bringing the total of Palestinians killed on Sunday to 19, Gaza health officials said, after another round of talks ended without result.

The airstrike hit a tent area inside the Al-Aqsa Hospital compound, starting a fire, and wounding at least 18 people in addition to the five killed, medical authorities said.

The Israeli military said it struck a militant who “conducted terror activities” and that secondary explosions were identified, indicating weapons were present in the area.

Its statement added that it struck 50 military targets across the enclave in the last 24 hours, including militants’ cells.

The hospital compound is in the Deir Al-Balah area, which is crowded with thousands of people displaced by fighting in other parts of the enclave.

Elsewhere in Deir Al-Balah, three Palestinians were killed when an Israeli missile struck a house, while eight other people were killed inside their home in Jabalia camp in northern Gaza City and three inside a car in separate Israeli strikes.

Reuters footage showed Palestinians trying to tackle the fire that broke out in the tent encampment with water and small fire extinguishers.

Israeli forces have continued strikes and shelling in the Gaza Strip after diplomatic efforts in Cairo on Saturday ended without progress, and as Israel braces for a serious escalation in the north.

Sirens went off in the area of ​​Ashdod, further north than seen in recent weeks, and the Israeli military said five rockets were launched from southern Gaza. No injuries were reported.

The chances of a breakthrough appear slim as regional tension has soared following the assassination of Hamas’ leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran on Wednesday, a day after an Israeli strike in Beirut killed Fuad Shukr, a top military commander from Lebanese armed group Hezbollah.

Haniyeh’s death was one in a series of killings of senior Hamas figures as the Gaza war nears its 11th month.

Hamas and Iran have both accused Israel of carrying out the assassination of Haniyeh and have pledged to retaliate. Israel has neither claimed nor denied responsibility for the death.

Hezbollah, like Hamas, is backed by Iran and has also vowed revenge after the killing of Shukr.

TWO SIDES FAR APART

International pressure has mounted on Israel to agree to ceasefire with Hamas to end the fighting and ensure the return of 115 Israeli and foreign hosts abducted during the Oct. 7 attack on Israel that unleashed months of violence and still held in Gaza.

At least 39,550 Palestinians have been killed in the Israeli military campaign in Gaza, according to Gaza health officials.

A high-level Israeli delegation arrived in Cairo on Saturday for an attempt to resume Gaza ceasefire negotiations, but returned home later in the day, Egyptian airport authority and Israeli media said.

On Sunday, Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a statement Hamas had yet to agree to the terms of a proposed outline for a ceasefire and hostage release deal.

He said disagreement remained over Israel’s insistence on being able to return to fighting if needed, on Israel retaining control of the Rafah crossing and Philadelphi corridor along the Egypt-Gaza border, and on the need for a mechanism to check for and prevent weapons and militants from returning to northern Gaza.

Hamas has blamed Netanyahu for the lack of progress, saying he is not interested in agreement.

“Things about the agreement have gone beyond the details,” Hamas official Sami Abu Zuhri said. “Netanyahu is dragging the region into an unprecedented clash.”

The families of many of the hostages, as well as Hamas and Netanyahu’s other political opponents, have accused him of blocking a deal for his own political purposes.

Biden used unusually angry words in a telephone conversation on Thursday night, as he Netanyahu pushed to reach an agreement, Israeli media reported.

A Palestinian official with close knowledge of Saturday’s talks said the threatened response to the assassination of Hamas and Hizbollah leaders and the process to replace Haniyeh meant it was unlikely diplomatic efforts could resume soon.

(Reporting by Nidal al-Mughrabi. Additional reporting by Ari Rabinovitch; editing by Barbara Lewis)