Five Israeli soldiers were killed in an attack in Gaza, the Israeli military said yesterday, while health officials in the Palestinian territory said 18 people were killed in Israeli strikes.
The bloodshed came as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was visiting the White House for talks with US President Donald Trump about a ceasefire plan to pause the fighting in Gaza.
While there was no announcement of a breakthrough, there were signs of progress toward a deal.
Photo: Reuters
The killings of the soldiers could add to the pressure on Netanyahu to strike a deal in Israel, where polls have shown widespread support for ending the war.
An Israeli security official said explosive devices were detonated against the soldiers during an operation in the Beit Hanoun area in northern Gaza, which was an early target of the war and an area where Israel has repeatedly fought regrouping militants.
Militants also opened fire on the forces who were evacuating the wounded soldiers, an official said.
The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss the incident with the media.
The military said 14 soldiers were wounded in the attack, two of them seriously. It brings the toll of soldiers killed to 888 since the war against Hamas began in 2023.
The soldiers died about two weeks after Israel reported one of its deadliest days in months in Gaza, when seven soldiers were killed after a Palestinian attacker attached a bomb to their armored vehicle.
Netanyahu in a statement sent his condolences for the deaths, saying the soldiers fell “in a campaign to defeat Hamas and to free all of our hostages.”
Health officials at Nasser Hospital, where victims of the Israeli strikes were taken, said one of the strikes targeted tents sheltering displaced people in Khan Younis in southern Gaza, killing four people.
A separate strike in Khan Younis killed four people, including a mother, father and their two children, officials said.
In central Gaza, Israeli strikes hit a group of people, killing 10 people and injuring 72 others, according to a statement by Awda Hospital in Nuseirat.
The Israeli military had no immediate comment on the strikes, but it blames Hamas for any harm to civilians, saying the militant group operates out of populated areas.
The fighting has pushed the healthcare system in Gaza close to collapse. The Palestine Red Crescent yesterday said that the al-Zaytoun Medical Clinic in Gaza City ceased operations after shelling in the surrounding area. It said the closure would force thousands of civilians to walk long distances to get medical care.
Trump has made clear that, following last month’s 12-day war between Israel and Iran, he would like to see the 21-month Gaza conflict end soon. Netanyahu’s visit to Washington might give new urgency to the ceasefire proposal.
White House officials are urging both sides to quickly seal an agreement that would bring about a 60-day pause in the fighting, send aid flooding into Gaza and free at least some of the remaining 50 hostages held in the territory, 20 of whom are believed to be alive.
A senior Israeli official said that 80 to 90 percent of the details had been ironed out and that a final agreement could be days away.
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