Highlights
* At least 52 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli attacks since dawn across the Gaza Strip as high-level negotiators get set to fly to Doha, Qatar for the latest round of ceasefire talks with Hamas.
* Israel’s 34 air strikes on Thursday killed 77 people across the besieged enclave as its military pounded targets from north to south.
Palestinian human rights group Al-Haq said Israel’s forced evacuation orders in Gaza are designed to facilitate attacks on the enclave’s population, including in so-called humanitarian “safe zones”.
* The United Nations denounced the targeting of Gaza’s hospitals saying medical facilities need “to be off limits” to military attacks and incursions.
* Israel’s war on Gaza has killed at least 45,658 Palestinians and wounded 108,583 since October 7, 2023. At least 1,139 people were killed in Israel during the Hamas-led attacks that day and more than 200 taken captive.
US urges Hamas to sign ceasefire deal and ensure release of captives
* The Biden administration is urging Hamas to sign a new ceasefire deal that would ensure the release of the remaining captives, White House National Security spokesperson John Kirby has told reporters.
* He said the US welcomed Israel’s decision to send another team to Doha to continue negotiations. The Biden administration is making a final push to help broker a ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas in its final weeks to end the fighting in Gaza and to try to secure the release of Hamas-held Israeli captives.
