At least 40 Palestinians have been killed by Israel’s military in attacks on central Gaza ahead of a new round of international talks to broker a truce and as Tel Aviv has outlined a plan for the enclave after the war ends.
The “heinous massacre” committed by Israeli forces in Deir el-Balah in the central part of the territory injured more than 100 people, Gaza’s government media office said in a statement late on Thursday, adding that the overwhelming majority of casualties were women and children.
“We hold the American administration and the international community, additionally to Israel, fully responsible for these ongoing crimes, and we call on the free world to immediately put an end to this war of extermination that the Israeli army is waging against civilians,” it said.
Reporting from Rafah in southern Gaza, Al Jazeera’s Tareq Abu Azzoum said residential homes were “attacked without any prior warning” in the strikes.
Hamas said in a statement on Friday that the attacks on homes “confirm to the international community that it [Israel] is a rogue entity that does not care about human laws and values”.
More than 29,000 Palestinians, mostly children and women, have been killed by the Israeli army since the start of the war on October 7, according to the Ministry of Health in Gaza.
Yet United States National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby said late on Thursday that negotiations for a ceasefire and the exchange of captives held in the enclave for Palestinian prisoners had been “constructive”.
A Hamas delegation left Cairo, Egypt, on Friday after three days of talks, for which Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu did not send representatives.
Egypt and Qatar-mediated negotiations are expected to continue later on Friday in Paris, with Israel also sending a delegation. A renewed ceasefire proposal could be crafted in the French capital, but the details are still unclear.
