The Israeli army bombs Gaza as pressure mounts for a ceasefire

Dozens of Israeli raids bombed the Gaza Strip over the weekend, as Israeli officials and Hamas continued indirect ceasefire talks through mediators in Qatar.

The Israeli military said on Sunday that it had struck more than 100 targets across the Strip over the weekend, including sites from which militants fired at least four shells toward Israeli territory on Friday and Saturday. It said the raids killed Hamas activists and that the army had taken measures to mitigate the risk of harm to civilians. These allegations could not be independently verified.

The Gaza Ministry of Health said in a statement on Sunday that 88 Palestinians were martyred in Israeli raids during the past 24 hours. The ministry’s figures do not differentiate between civilians and combatants. Gaza Civil Defense Emergency Services AgencyIt said its crews responded to several air strikes on family homes on Sunday, killing and wounding several people.

Pressure is mounting on both sides to reach a ceasefire agreement that includes the release of hostages held in Gaza before President-elect Donald Trump takes office on January 20. Both Hamas and Israel said they would send delegations to Gaza. The Qatari capital, Doha, met in recent days with mediators.

The Israeli delegation remained in Doha over the weekend, according to an Israeli person familiar with the matter, who spoke on condition of anonymity due to a lack of authorization to discuss the secret talks publicly. The source said that the discussions in Doha are making slow progress and aim to reach a limited agreement that would see a temporary cessation of fighting and the release of some Israeli hostages in exchange for the release of a number of Palestinians imprisoned in Israel.

Reflecting the continuing gap between the two sides, at least in their public positions, Hamas said in a statement on Friday that the current round of talks would focus on an agreement leading to a complete ceasefire and the details of the withdrawal of Israeli forces from the Gaza Strip. Israel has not committed to ending the war, said an official who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive diplomacy. He said Last week.

Nearly 100 hostages remain held in Gaza among about 250 people captured during the Hamas-led attacks in October 2023 that led to the war. It is assumed that at least a third of them are dead.

A week-long truce in November 2023 allowed the release of 105 hostages, but subsequent efforts to reach a ceasefire faltered amid gaps in the demands of both sides. Each side blames the other for the failure to reach an agreement.

Israeli officials recently said they believe Hamas is rebuilding its forces in Gaza. The group appears to be recruiting new fighters faster than Israel can eliminate them.

Security officials reportedly said This is what he said before an Israeli parliamentary committee last week Hamas has up to 19,000 fighters, including about 9,000 in organized units. Israel before the war It is estimated that Hamas has approximately 25,000 soldiers fighters, although Hamas has never confirmed this number.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, He said In November, the Israeli army killed nearly 20,000 fighters.

In total, more than 45,000 Palestinians were killed during the war, according to the Gaza Ministry of Health.

As hopes rise for a limited ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas again, Palestinians and human rights organizations say The human condition In Gaza, despair is increasing.

Palestinian Red Crescent Society He said on Sunday Nighttime Israeli air strikes near Al Amal Hospital in the southern city of Khan Yunis caused severe damage to several hospital facilities and killed one person.

Last week, Israeli forces The last remaining major hospital was raided North Gaza, Kamal Adwan, forced its staff and patients to evacuate. The Israeli army said that Kamal Adwan is a Hamas stronghold and that it is carrying out “targeted operations” in the region.

The hospital was the main provider of medical care in the far northern Gaza Strip amid a months-long offensive launched by the Israeli army against what it says is the emerging Hamas movement.

Global Health Organization He said The raid on Kamal Adwan “put the last major health facility in northern Gaza out of service” – and that the remaining patients, caregivers and health workers were transferred to the Indonesian hospital.

But the Gaza Ministry of Health said on Sunday that the Indonesian hospital in northern Gaza was no longer providing its services to the sick or wounded, leaving the northern part of the Strip Without any functioning hospitals Amidst the almost continuous bombing.

Aaron Puckerman She contributed to this report.