At least 70 individuals were reported killed in an Israeli air strike on the Al-Maghazi refugee camp in central Gaza, as confirmed by Gaza’s Hamas-run health ministry.
The death toll is expected to rise due to the significant number of families residing in the area. The Israeli military is investigating the reports of the strike.
Simultaneously, there are indications from Israeli and Arab media that Egypt, sharing a border with the Gaza Strip, has proposed a new ceasefire between Israel and Hamas.
Numerous injured individuals, including children, were swiftly transported from Maghazi to Al-Aqsa Hospital, with distressing scenes of bloodied faces and body bags outside.
The health ministry stated that three houses were struck in the late Sunday attack, resulting in the destruction of a densely populated residential block.
A father said he had lost his daughter and grandchildren, adding that his family had fled from the north for safety in central Gaza.
“They lived on the third floor of one of the buildings,” he said. “The wall collapsed on them. My grandchildren, my daughter, her husband – all gone.
“We are all targeted. Civilians are targeted. There is no safe place. They told us to leave Gaza City – now we came to central Gaza to die.”
The Palestine Red Crescent Society says “intense” Israeli air strikes have led to the closure of main roads between Maghazi and two other refugee camps, Al-Bureij and Al-Nuseirat, “hindering the work of ambulances and rescue teams”.
In a statement to the BBC, the Israeli military said it had received “reports of an incident in the Maghazi camp”.
“Despite the challenges posed by Hamas terrorists operating within civilian areas in Gaza, the IDF [Israeli Defense Forces] is committed to international law including taking feasible steps to minimize harm to civilians,” it added.
According to the health ministry, more than 20,000 people have been killed – mostly children and women – and 54,000 injured in Gaza since 7 October, when Hamas and other Palestinian groups attacked Israel, killing 1,200 people and taking about 240 hostages.
According to the Israeli military, over a dozen soldiers have lost their lives in Gaza since Friday, bringing the total number of casualties from the ground offensive that began on October 7 to 156.
Despite Saturday being one of the deadliest days, Mr. Netanyahu insisted that there was “no choice” but to continue the conflict.
The new ceasefire proposal by Egypt would be implemented in three parts:
- The first phase of the ceasefire would see a humanitarian pause of seven to ten days during which Hamas would release all civilian hostages in exchange for some Palestinian prisoners from Israeli jails
- In the week-long second phase, Hamas would release all Israeli female soldiers in return for more prisoners and the exchange of corpses held since 7 October
- The third phase, which would last a month, would see the release of the remaining hostages and a number of Palestinian prisoners and Israel withdrawing from the Gaza Strip and suspension of all aerial activities.
Indirect negotiations would be held in Egypt with Qatari and US participation.
An Israeli source told Maariv newspaper that the Egyptian initiative could lead to negotiations. Hamas says it is studying the proposal.
Meanwhile, the Danish shipping giant, Maersk, says it is preparing to resume shipping operations through the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden.
The announcement came after an international military operation, led by the US, was deployed to prevent the targeting of commercial ships by drones from areas of Yemen controlled by Houthi rebels. The Houthis have declared their support for Hamas and have said they would target any ship travelling to Israel.
Maersk and other shipping companies stopped sending ships through the Red Sea and the Suez Canal earlier this month as a result of drone attacks. US Central Command said two days ago that a US navy destroyer had shot down four drones in the Red Sea launched from Yemeni territory.
In another development, Pope Francis appealed for peace in the Middle East as he presided over a Christmas Eve Mass at Saint Peter’s Basilica in the Vatican.
Referring to the war between Israel and Hamas, the Pope said Jesus’s message of peace was being drowned out by the “futile logic of war” in the very land where he had been born.