Israeli strikes at two locations in Gaza killed 18 people. Meanwhile, five Israeli soldiers were killed overnight in northern Gaza, the Israeli military said Tuesday in an attack that came as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was in Washington and Israel and Hamas consider a US-backed ceasefire proposal.
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, reports AP.
Militants also opened fire on the forces who were evacuating the wounded soldiers, the official said. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorised to discuss the incident with the media.
The military said two soldiers were seriously wounded in the attack, which brings the toll of soldiers killed to 888 since the war against Hamas began in 2023.
The soldiers died roughly two weeks after Israel reported once of its deadliest days in months in Gaza, when seven soldiers were killed when a Palestinian attacker attached a bomb to their armored vehicle.
Health officials at the 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 because the militant group operates out of populated areas.
US President Donald 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 may 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 living.
A sticking point is whether the ceasefire will end the war altogether. Hamas has said it is willing to free all the hostages in exchange for an end to the war and a full Israeli withdrawal from Gaza. Netanyahu says the war will end once Hamas surrenders, disarms and goes into exile — something it refuses to do.
The war began when Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people and taking 251 others hostage. Most have been released in earlier ceasefires. Israel retaliated by launching an offensive that killed over 57,000 Palestinians, more than half of them women and children.