Multiple Israeli strikes across Gaza killed at least 29 people, including young quintuplets, during the intervening night of Aug 17-18 and also in the afternoon, health officials and media reports said.
The latest strikes took place as US Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrived in Israel to try and seal a ceasefire deal that could help ease soaring regional tensions.
“This is a decisive moment — probably the best, maybe the last, opportunity to get the hostages home. To get a ceasefire in place and to put everyone on a better path to enduring peace and security,” Aljazeera quoted Blinken as having said on Aug 18.
Notably, it is Blinken's ninth trip to the region since Israel’s war on Gaza began in October.
The latest Israeli bombardment included a strike on a home in Deir al-Balah that killed a woman and her six children, according to Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital.
Mohammed Awad Khatab, the children’s grandfather told reporters his daughter was a teacher, and the youngest child was 18 months. The others were 10-year-old quintuplets, the hospital said.
“The six children have become body parts. They were placed in a single bag,” Khatab told reporters. “What did they do? Did they kill any of the Jews?… Will this provide security to Israel?”
Another strike east of Deir al-Balah killed at least four people, according to media reports. A strike in the northern town of Jabaliya hit two apartments, killing two men, a woman and her daughter, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry.
Another two strikes in central Gaza killed nine people, according to Al-Awda hospital. A strike in Nuseirat killed one person, the hospital said.
The US and fellow mediators Egypt and Qatar have said they were closing in on a deal after two days of talks in Doha, with Israeli officials expressing cautious optimism.
But Hamas in a statement on Aug 18 accused Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of setting new conditions, including his refusal of a complete withdrawal of forces from Gaza.
‘Maybe the last chance for ceasefire’
Meanwhile Blinken on his visit to Israel Aug 19 described ongoing negotiations as “maybe the last” chance to secure the release of captives and secure the ceasefire.
The top US diplomat speaking in Tel Aviv before meeting Israeli President Isaac Herzog said he was also working to de-escalate other regional tensions fueled by the war in Gaza.
Blinken is scaling up US diplomatic pressure to try and reach a deal to end the 10-month conflict after the United States put forward proposals last week in a bid to close the gaps between the warring parties, according to media reports.
“I am here as part of an intensive diplomatic effort on President Biden’s instructions to try to get this agreement to the line and ultimately over the line. It is time for everyone to get to yes and to not look for any excuses to say no,” he added.
“It is time for it to get done. It’s also time to make sure that no one takes any steps that could derail this process,” he concluded.
The US and other Western leaders have called on Iran and its allies to refrain from anticipated attacks on Israel in retaliation for the recent killings of senior members of Hamas and Hezbollah.
There is a growing concern that Israel’s war will escalate into an all-out regional conflict multiplied after the assassinations last month of Hamas’s political chief Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran and Fuad Shukr, a top commander of the Lebanese group Hezbollah, in Beirut.
“We’re working to make sure that there is no escalation. There are no provocations and no actions that in any way could move us away from getting this deal over the line. Or, for that matter, escalate the conflict to other places, and to greater intensity,” Blinken said.
The diplomat is later scheduled to meet Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Herzog, who holds a largely ceremonial role, said Israelis wanted to see the return “as soon as possible” of captives held in Gaza since Hamas snatched them during its October 7 attack. Israel’s war began after Hamas’s surprise attack.
“There is no greater humanitarian objective, and there’s no greater humanitarian cause, than bringing back our hostages,” Herzog told Blinken.
The US, Egypt, and Qatar have been acting as mediators in several indirect negotiations between Israel and Hamas. The last round of talks ended on Aug 16 in Qatar, with no resolution. It is expected to resume again in Cairo, Egypt this week.
Hamas has been insisting that the ceasefire end the war permanently, while Israel has said any deal should not limit it from continuing the war despite repeated US statements for the deal to end the conflict.
Meanwhile, in Gaza, Israel’s deadly attacks continue, with the death toll from Israel’s bombardment now over 40,000, according to Palestinian health authorities.
