Israeli strikes kill 21 Palestinians in Gaza as mediators push for ceasefire talks

At least 21 Palestinians were killed in Israeli airstrikes and gunfire across the Gaza Strip on Thursday, according to local health officials, as international mediators renewed efforts to restart ceasefire negotiations between Israel and Hamas.

Health authorities reported that an Israeli airstrike hit a school sheltering displaced families in Gaza City’s Sheikh Radwan neighborhood, killing at least nine people. Another strike in southern Gaza, near a tent encampment in Khan Younis, also claimed nine lives.

Elsewhere, Israeli forces opened fire as crowds gathered for aid along a main road in central Gaza, killing three people and injuring dozens, medics said. The incident marks the latest in a series of deadly attacks near humanitarian distribution points.

The Israeli military has not issued any immediate statement on the latest strikes. Israel maintains that its ongoing offensive is aimed at eliminating Hamas militants and rescuing hostages taken during the group’s October 2023 assault on southern Israel.

The renewed violence comes as Egypt and Qatar, with U.S. support, reached out to both sides in an attempt to restart ceasefire negotiations. However, no date has yet been set for a new round of talks, according to Hamas sources.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, whose government includes far-right factions, has said that any resolution must include the full release of hostages, the disarmament of Hamas, and its complete removal from power in Gaza.

Hamas, on the other hand, has offered to release hostages in exchange for a permanent ceasefire and a full Israeli withdrawal from the territory. While the group has reportedly agreed to step away from governing Gaza, it has refused to disarm.

Hamas-led fighters killed nearly 1,200 people and captured 251 hostages during the October 7, 2023 attack on Israel. In response, Israel launched a large-scale military campaign that has since killed over 56,000 Palestinians, according to local health authorities, and devastated much of the coastal enclave.

Most hostage releases to date have occurred through indirect negotiations between the two sides.