“Israeli” strikes kill 43 in Gaza as truce talks deadlocked

Gaza's civil defence agency said “Israeli” air strikes on Sunday killed more than 40 Palestinians, including children at a water distribution point, as talks for a ceasefire between “Israel” and Hamas stalled.

Delegations from “Israel” and Hamas have now spent a week trying to agree on a temporary truce to halt 21 months of devastating fighting in the Gaza Strip.

On the ground, civil defence agency spokesman Mahmud Bassal said eight children were among the 10 victims of a drone strike at a water point.

“Israel's” military blamed it on a "technical error" claiming it was targeting a fighter in the Nuseirat refugee camp in central Gaza, adding "the munition fell dozens of meters from the target".

Washington is “Israel's” top ally and Donald Trump has been pushing for a ceasefire, with the US president saying Sunday he was hopeful of a deal.

But there was no immediate sign an end to the fighting was near. Strikes across the Palestinian territory on Sunday killed at least 43 people, including 11 at a Gaza City market, Bassal said.

Targets

The “Israeli” military, which has recently intensified operations across Gaza, said that in the past 24 hours the air force "struck more than 150 terror targets".

It released aerial footage of what it said were fighter jet strikes attacking Hamas targets around Beit Hanoun, in northern Gaza, showing explosions on the ground and thick smoke in the sky.

UN agencies on Saturday warned that fuel shortages had reached "critical levels", threatening to worsen conditions for Gaza's more than two million people.

"Only 150,000 litres of fuel have been allowed in over the past few days -- an amount that covers less than one day's needs," the head of the Palestinian NGOs Network in Gaza, Amjad Shawa, told AFP on Sunday.

"We require 275,000 litres of fuel per day to meet basic needs."

Forced displacement fears

Talks in the Qatari capital Doha to seal a 60-day ceasefire and captive release were in the balance on Saturday after “Israel” and Hamas accused each other of trying to block a deal.

Despite the deadlock, Trump said "hopefully we're going to get that straightened out over the next week", speaking to reporters Sunday as he echoed similarly optimistic comments he made July 4.

Hamas wants the complete withdrawal of “Israeli” forces from Gaza, but a Palestinian source with knowledge of the talks said “Israel” had presented plans to maintain troops in more than 40 percent of the territory.

The source said “Israel” wanted to force hundreds of thousands of Palestinians into the south of Gaza "in preparation for forcibly displacing them to Egypt or other countries".

A senior “Israeli” official said “Israel” had demonstrated an openness "to flexibility in the negotiations, while Hamas remains intransigent, clinging to positions that prevent the mediators from advancing an agreement".

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said he is prepared to enter talks for a more lasting end to hostilities once a temporary truce is agreed, but only if Hamas disarms.

Netanyahu on Sunday evening faced renewed pressure to secure the release of all captives when protesters beamed images of captives onto buildings near his Jerusalem office.