The region’s Civil Emergency Service said an Israeli air strike killed four Palestinians in Gaza on Tuesday, just as Arab mediators and the United States tried to resolve the differences between Hamas and Israel in a Jan. 19 ceasefire agreement.
The Israeli military said its air force attacked “terrorists who engage in suspicious activities on the ground in central Gaza and pose a threat to the troops.”
At the Al-Ahli Arab Hospital, relatives of the deceased sat around the white-shrouded corpse to say goodbye. Medical staff and relatives said four people, including the two brothers, were civilians.
“Did we end the war or something happen? We don’t know,” said Arafat al-Hana, the father of one of the victims.
Israel sent a delegation to the Qatari capital Doha for more ceasefire talks, with Hamas leaders holding a round of talks in Cairo earlier this week. However, there is no indication of a dispute threatening armed conflict.
Fighting in Gaza has ceased since the first phase of the armistice on January 19, with Hamas having exchanged 33 Israeli hostages and five Thais for about 2,000 Palestinian prisoners and detainees.
Hamas wanted to start the conversation in the second phase, which could have reached an agreement on all the draws Israel has received from the enclave. Israel demanded that Palestinian militants release the remaining hostages without starting the second phase of negotiations.
Aid barriers to Gaza remain
Hamas accused Israel of trying to cut its last power line to the enclave on Tuesday, causing a famine in Gaza, a move that affected water dehydration and sewage treatment facilities.
“We call on mediators to put pressure on careers [Israel] To comply with its commitments and to open the crossover immediately to ensure the flow of humanitarian aid and to end the collective punishment policy adopted by the occupation authorities against our people. ” it said in a statement.
Israel imports aid flows from food, medicine and fuel imports this month aim to put pressure on militant group Hamas. On Sunday, it announced power cuts, and aid groups said they would deprive Gaza people of clean water.
Palestinian officials say people in Gaza may soon run out of clean drinking water. After Israel cut off electricity supply from Gaza this weekend, the backup generator at a desalination plant in Deir Al-Balah has a capacity of about 30%.
The head of the UN Palestinian Relief Agency (UNRWA) said on Monday that there will be a risk in Gaza if Israel continues to block aid.
“I think the more we keep moving forward [with aid blockages]the more impact we will see on the population. Obviously, the risk is…we went back to what we experienced a few months ago about the situation of hunger in the Gaza Strip. ”
According to Gaza health officials, militants mainly Hamas launched a cross-border attack on southern Israel on October 7, 2023, triggering an Israeli offensive into the Gaza Strip, which killed more than 48,000 Palestinians.
According to the Israeli Soles, Hamas militants killed 1,200 people and captured 251 hostages.
