Israeli strikes in central Gaza kill at least 11 as the US pushes a cease-fire plan
World
Israeli strikes in central Gaza kill at least 11 as the US pushes a cease-fire plan
NEW YORK (AP) - Palestinian health officials said Israeli strikes killed 11 people overnight into Monday, including a woman and three children, in central Gaza.
A strike on a home in the built-up Bureij refugee camp late Sunday killed four people, including the three children. A second strike early Monday killed seven people, including a woman, in the Nuseirat refugee camp.
The bombardments come days after U.S. President Joe Biden said Israel has offered Hamas a three-phase cease-fire and hostage release deal, declaring it was time to end the fighting in Gaza and that Hamas is “no longer capable” of carrying out another large-scale attack on Israel.
Israel is expanding its offensive in the southern Gaza city of Rafah, once the main hub of humanitarian aid operations. The Israeli invasion has largely cut off the flow of food, medicine and other supplies to Palestinians facing widespread hunger. Israel faces growing international criticism over the huge cost in civilian lives and the widespread destruction caused by its nearly eight-month war with Hamas.
Israeli bombardments and ground operations in the besieged territory have killed more than 36,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, which does not distinguish between combatants and civilians.
Israel launched its war in Gaza after Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack, in which militants stormed into southern Israel, killed some 1,200 people — mostly civilians — and abducted about 250. Israel says around 100 hostages are still captive in Gaza, along with the bodies of around 30 more.
