At least 25 people killed by Israeli gunshots and strikes in Gaza, some while seeking aid
DEIR AL-BALAH Gaza Strip AP At least people were killed by Israeli airstrikes and gunshots overnight according to wellbeing representatives and the ambulance function on Saturday as ceasefire talks appear to have stalled and Palestinians in Gaza face famine The majority of sufferers were killed by gunfire as they waited for aid trucks close to the Zikim bridging with Israel declared staff at Shifa hospital where the bodies were brought Israel s army didn t respond to request for comments about the latest shootings Those killed in strikes include four people in an apartment building in Gaza City among others hospital staff and the ambulance organization commented The strikes come as ceasefire talks between Israel and Hamas have hit a standstill after the U S and Israel recalled their negotiating teams on Thursday throwing the future of the talks into further uncertainty Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced Friday his executive was considering alternative options to ceasefire talks with Hamas His comments came as a Hamas official noted negotiations were expected to resume next week and portrayed the recall of the Israeli and American delegations as a pressure tactic Egypt and Qatar which are mediating the talks alongside the United States commented the pause was only temporary and that talks would resume though they did not say when For desperate Palestinians a ceasefire can t come soon enough The United Nations and experts say that Palestinians in Gaza are at exposure of famine with reports of increasing numbers of people dying from causes related to malnutrition While Israel s army says it s allowing aid into the enclave with no limit on the number of trucks that can enter the U N says it is hampered by Israeli military restrictions on its movements and incidents of criminal looting The Zikim moving across shootings come days after at least Palestinians were killed trying to reach aid entering through the same bridging Israel s military mentioned at the time its soldiers shot at a gathering of thousands of Palestinians who posed a threat and that it was aware of a few casualties Israel is facing increased international pressure to alleviate the catastrophic humanitarian predicament in Gaza More then two dozen Western-aligned countries and more than charity and human rights groups have called for an end to the war harshly criticizing Israel s blockade and a new aid delivery model it has rolled out The charities and rights groups revealed even their own staff were struggling to get enough food For the first time in months Israel commented it is allowing airdrops requested by Jordan A Jordanian official noted the airdrops will mainly be food and milk formula British Prime Minister Keir Starmer wrote in a newspaper article on Saturday that the U K was working urgently with Jordan to get British aid into Gaza Aid group the World Central Kitchen disclosed on Friday that it was resuming limited cooking operations in Deir al-Balah after being forced to halt due to a lack of food supplies It declared it s trying to serve meals daily through its field kitchen and partner society kitchens less than half of what it s cooked over the previous month Magdy published from Cairo Egypt Source
