Israel on Sunday continued attacks across Gaza, killing at least 16 Palestinians, including two aid seekers, despite its primary ally, US President Donald Trump's order to "immediately" halt the bombing
Another Palestinian died of hunger on Sunday, bringing the death toll from Israel-induced starvation in Gaza to 460, including 154 children. According to the territory's Health Ministry, at least 182 deaths, including that of 39 children, have been recorded since the UN-backed global hunger monitor, the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification, declared famine in Gaza in August this year.
"We’re on the brink, and we don’t know whether one will die of a strike or starvation,” said Mahmoud Hashem, a Palestinian father of five, who is forced to shelter in a tent in the centre of Gaza City, reported Associated Press.
Israel's continuous attacks on Gaza came as a team of Israeli negotiators prepared to depart for Egypt Sunday night for scheduled talks with Palestinian group Hamas regarding the exchange of prisoners as part of a plan pushed by Trump.
Hamas and Israeli negotiators will hold talks in the Egyptian resort town of Sharm El-Sheikh on Monday. Confirming the talks, Cairo said it would be hosting a delegation from Hamas for talks on "the ground conditions and details of the exchange of all Israeli detainees and Palestinian prisoners."
Ahead of the talks, Hamas on Sunday called for a swift start to the prisoner exchange, stressing that the group is keen to reach an agreement to immediately end Israel's genocidal war.
"Hamas is very keen to reach an agreement to end the war and immediately begin the prisoner exchange process in accordance with the field conditions," a senior Hamas official told AFP on condition of anonymity.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Sunday said the current situation is "the closest we’ve come to getting all of the hostages released."
Calling for an end to Israeli attacks on Gaza, he stressed that Israeli captives held by Hamas cannot be released otherwise.
"I think the Israelis and everyone acknowledge you can't release hostages in the middle of strikes, so the strikes will have to stop," Rubio told CBS News talk show "Face the Nation."
"There can't be a war going on in the middle of it," he said.
However, Israel on Sunday said that there is no ceasefire taking effect in Gaza right now, but just a temporary halt to some of the bombing.
“While certain bombings have actually stopped inside of the Gaza Strip, there’s no ceasefire in place at this point in time,” Israeli government spokeswoman Shosh Badrosian told journalists.
According to the Wafa News Agency, at least 70 Palestinians, most of them children, have been kiled by Israel since Trump's order on Friday to "immediately" halt the bombing, following Hamas' partial acceptance of his proposal.
Welcoming Hamas' response to his plan, Trump had said on Friday, "Israel must immediately stop the bombing of Gaza, so that we can get the Hostages out safely and quickly! Right now, it's far too dangerous to do that. We are already in discussions on the details to be worked out."
Israel's genocidal war on Gaza has so far killed at least 67,139 Palestinians, more than half of them being women and children. Over 220 journalists and at least 1000 healthcare workers have also been killed, mostly in targeted attacks by Israel.
Meanwhile, the foreign ministers of eight Muslim-majority countries issued a joint statement Sunday welcoming steps toward a possible ceasefire.
In backing Hamas’ willingness to hand over the running of Gaza to a transitional committee, the ministers called for an "immediate launch of negotiations to agree on mechanisms to implement the proposal."
They also underlined their commitment to the return of the Palestinian Authority to Gaza, unifying Gaza and the West Bank, and reaching an agreement on security, leading to a “full Israeli withdrawal” from Gaza.
(With inputs from AP, AFP)
