At least 32 Palestinians were killed in Israeli air strikes across the Gaza Strip, mostly women and children, as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu heads to Washington to meet with US President Donald Trump about the war.
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Israel is continuing its relentless bombardment of Gaza three-weeks with daily operations and strikes taking place after a fragile ceasefire was broken three-weeks ago.
At least 32 Palestinians were killed across the enclave on Sunday, mostly women and children.
A UN report published on 2 April says more than one thousand people have been killed in Gaza since the collapse of the ceasefire on 18 March. More than 100,000 have also been displaced, mostly from Rafah, as Israel ramps up its evacuation orders.
Several neighbourhoods were ordered to evacuate in central Gaza’s Deir al-Balah neighbourhood shortly after about 10 projectiles were fired from the strip – the largest barrage from the territory since Israel resumed the war.
Israel says about five were intercepted. Hamas’ military wing claimed responsibility. Police said a rocket fell in Ashkelon city and fragments fell in several other areas. Seven people were injured according to Israeli officials.
Overnight strikes on Gaza hit a tent and a house in the south of the enclave, in Khan Younis, killing five men, five women and five children, according to the hospital receiving the bodies.
At least four others were killed in the Jabaliya refugee camp in the north, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry. One of the dead was a child and three were women.
A strike in Gaza City targeted people waiting outside a bakery and killed at least six, of which three were children, according to the Civil Defence, which operates under the Hamas-run government.
The attacks come as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu gears up to visit US President Donald Trump in the White House on Monday. It’s the second time the Israeli premier meets the US president since Trump’s return to Washington.
Netanyahu says he’ll discuss the war with Trump, update the US leader on recent developments and discuss next steps. The Israeli leader said he will also discuss the new 17% tariff imposed on Israel as part of Trump’s sweeping global tariff policy.
The US, which is a mediator in ceasefire efforts along with Egypt and Qatar, has expressed support for Israel’s resumption of the war last month.
The war in Gaza started after Hamas fighters carried out an attack on southern Israel on 7 October, 2023, killing 1,200 people, mostly civilians.
251 hostages were taken, most of whom have since been released as part of negotiations between the two parties. 59 hostages remain, 24 of which are believed to still be alive.
Israel has vowed to intensify violence across Gaza in a bid to force the group into submission and facilitate the return of the remaining hostages. All supplies of food, fuel and humanitarian aid have also been cut off to apply more pressure.
Israel has also demanded the group disarm and leave Gaza. Hamas says it will only release the hostages in exchange for the release of more Palestinian prisoners, a lasting ceasefire and a full Israeli withdrawal from Gaza.
The group however rejects the premise of laying down its arms or departing the enclave.