At least four Palestinians were killed in an Israeli airstrike and 22 wounded while waiting for humanitarian aid, according to a local hospital. The Israeli military said Sunday that it has recovered the remains of three hostages held in the Gaza Strip.
The military identified the remains as those of Yonatan Samerano, 21, Ofra Keidar, 70, and Shay Levinson, 19. All three were killed during Hamas’ October 7, 2023, attack into Israel that ignited the ongoing war. The militant group is still holding 50 hostages, less than half of them believed to be alive, reports AP.
The military did not provide any details about the recovery operation, and it was unclear if the airstrike was related to it.
“The campaign to return the hostages continues consistently and is happening alongside the campaign against Iran,” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a statement.
Four people were killed on Sunday in an airstrike in the built-up Nuseirat refugee camp in central Gaza, according to Al-Awda Hospital, where the bodies were brought. It said another 22 people were wounded while waiting for aid trucks.
Palestinian witnesses and health officials say Israeli forces have repeatedly opened fire on crowds seeking desperately needed food, killing hundreds of people in recent weeks. The military says it has fired warning shots at people it said approached its forces in a suspicious manner.
Hamas-led militants killed some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducted 251 people in the October 7 attack. More than half the hostages have been returned in ceasefire agreements or other deals, eight have been rescued alive and Israeli forces have recovered dozens of bodies.
Israel’s retaliatory offensive has killed over 55,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, which has said that women and children make up more than half of the dead. It does not distinguish between civilians and combatants.
Hamas has said it will only release the remaining hostages in return for more Palestinian prisoners, a lasting ceasefire and an Israeli withdrawal from Gaza.
Netanyahu has rejected those terms, saying Israel will continue the war until all the hostages are returned and Hamas is defeated or disarmed and sent into exile. Even then, he has said Israel will maintain lasting control over Gaza and facilitate what he refers to as the voluntary emigration of much of its population, plans the Palestinians and others view as forcible expulsion.
Meanwhile, Israel- and US- backed Gaza Humanitarian Fund has asked the Trump administration to step in with an initial $30 million so it can continue its much scrutinized and Israeli-backed aid distribution in Gaza, according to three US officials and the organization’s application for the money.
That application also offers some of the first financial details about the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation and its work in the territory. That includes a projection of a $150 million monthly budget once the group’s current aid sites fully gear up — an amount equal to $1.8 billion a year.
The foundation says it has provided millions of meals in southern Gaza since late May to Palestinians as Israel’s blockade and military campaign have driven the Gaza to the brink of famine.