At least eight people were killed in an Israeli attack on a school that shelters displaced Palestinians in northern Gaza, as Israel sent in several senior officials for ceasefire talks.
An Israeli attack on Saturday hit the Zainab al-Wazir school in the northern Jabalia al-Balad district of Gaza, killing eight civilians, including two women and two children, according to the Palestinian civil emergency service.
“The Israelis have targeted us without any prior warning,” a mother told Al Jazeera, as she searched through the rubble. “They attacked us with a missile. I don't know where the our children. I don't know anything about them, whether they are injured or killed.”
Al Jazeera's Moath al-Kahlout described the scenes at al-Ahli Hospital in Gaza City, where dozens of the wounded were taken, as “bloody” and “horrific”, noting the lack of medical supplies. under the ongoing Israeli siege of northern Gaza, which. has been in place for over 80 days.
Later on Saturday, the official Palestinian news agency Wafa reported strikes in various locations across Gaza, including an attack on a house in the Daraj neighborhood of Gaza City, which killed four Palestinians and wounded several others. .
Israeli fighter jets also blew up a tent sheltering displaced families in Deir el-Balah, which is in the middle of the sea, killing three people, Wafa said.
Additional strikes reportedly killed one person near the Bureij refugee camp, also in central Gaza, and another in the southern town of Khan Younis.
The attacks intensified as Egypt, Qatar and the United States made renewed efforts to reach an agreement to end fighting in Gaza and free remaining Israeli prisoners in exchange for freed Palestinian prisoners. keeping them in Israeli prisons.
'Tight Points'
On Saturday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met with President Donald Trump's incoming special envoy for the Middle East, Steve Witkoff, who had traveled to Qatar earlier in the week.
Witkoff had reassured Egyptian and Qatari mediators that the US would continue to work towards a fair agreement to end the war soon, Egyptian security sources cited by him said. the Reuters news agency.
After the meeting, Netanyahu sent a high-level delegation, including the head of Israel's Mossad intelligence agency, to Qatar to further “discussions,” according to a statement from Netanyahu's office.
“There are a lot of moving parts here,” said Al Jazeera's Hamdah Salhut, reporting from the Jordanian capital, Amman.
“Donald Trump said he would be very aggressive in trying to get a ceasefire if it didn't happen before he took office… But you have to remember that there are strong points on both sides ,” she said.
“The Israelis say they are not going to end the war, and Hamas says they want to see a complete ceasefire that will see an end to the war and the withdrawal of Israeli troops away.
“And you also have the Israeli people, who are always showing up against Benjamin Netanyahu, against the Israeli government, saying that it is not possible or willing to make a deal fifteen months into this war,” said i.
Families of Israeli detainees welcomed Netanyahu's decision to deport the officers, with the headquarters of the Disappeared Hosts and Families Forum describing it as a “historic opportunity”.
'Impossible to stay alive'
As mediators prepare for more ceasefire talks, Al Jazeera's Hind Khoudary said Palestinians under siege in Gaza were also struggling with severe food shortages, with Israel continuing to ignore demands. of the United Nations about lifting its restrictions on supplies entering the conflict.
“We see children with empty pots every day looking for community kitchens, talking to families saying they can barely feed their children one meal a day,” said Khoudary, report from Deir el-Balah.
“It's not just the continuous airstrikes, but also malnutrition is killing Palestinians in the Gaza Strip,” she said.
Vibe Klarup, head of Amnesty Denmark, said Israel was committing “genocide”.
“When we say that Israel is committing genocide, it is not an opinion, it is a decision based on a legal analysis,” she told the Palestine Network conference in the – Europe in Copenhagen.
“It is becoming more and more impossible to stay alive in the Gaza Strip… Our duty as people is to stop the genocide,” she said.
At least 46,537 people have been killed in Israel's war on Gaza since October 7, 2023, according to Palestinian health authorities.
