An Israeli air strike killed a man, his wife and their six-year-old daughter in central Gaza on Wednesday, Palestinian health officials said, as talks to advance a US-brokered ceasefire showed little progress, reports Reuters.
The strike on an apartment building in Deir Al-Balah killed Omar Abu Qassem, his wife Asma and their daughter Habeeba, medics said. Their son survived but was injured.
In Gaza City's Sheikh Radwan neighbourhood, another Israeli air strike killed one person, according to medics. The Israeli military did not immediately comment on the incident.
Since the start of the ceasefire, the ministry said Israeli attacks have killed 1,123 Palestinians and injured 3,616 others, while 800 bodies have been recovered.
The ceasefire halted large-scale fighting but has not stopped near-daily Israeli strikes. Four Israeli soldiers have also been killed in Gaza since the truce began.
The latest violence came as Hamas officials concluded another round of ceasefire talks in Cairo on Tuesday.
The negotiations, mediated by Egypt, Türkiye and Qatar, sought to advance the second phase of US President Donald Trump's Gaza peace plan.
According to sources familiar with the talks, discussions focused on Hamas' disarmament and the withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza, but made little progress.
The second phase of the proposal also envisages a US-backed Palestinian technocratic committee governing Gaza, the deployment of an international security force and the start of reconstruction efforts.
Indonesia, Morocco, Kazakhstan, Kosovo and Albania have committed troops to the planned International Stabilisation Force, although none have yet deployed because negotiations have stalled.
Speaking at an aid conference in Brussels on Monday, Board of Peace envoy for Gaza Nickolay Mladenov said he would travel to Morocco to formalise the country's contribution to the force.
Dispute over ceasefire implementation
Mladenov said the October ceasefire was holding "imperfectly", with violations continuing, and urged Hamas to agree to what he described as a roadmap for further negotiations.
Hamas official Basem Naim accused Mladenov of siding with Israel during the negotiations and failing to hold it accountable for violations of the ceasefire agreement.
The first phase of the plan called for Israeli forces to withdraw to a designated "yellow" line. Israel has instead continued advancing its forces and now occupies more than 60% of Gaza.
The Palestinian resistance group has repeatedly said it will not move to the second phase of the agreement until the terms of the first phase are implemented.
Nearly all of Gaza's two million residents, many of whom have been displaced multiple times, are living in a narrow coastal area, mostly in tents or damaged buildings.
The ministry said the overall death toll from Israel’s brutal assault on Gaza since October 8 2023 has risen to 73,246, with 173,727 others injured in addition to widespread destruction affecting about 90% of civilian infrastructure.
END/REUTERS/ASA
