At least eight Palestinians, including six children, were killed and over a dozen wounded in an Israeli airstrike on central Gaza on Sunday, according to local officials.
The Israeli military acknowledged the strike had missed its intended target—an Islamic Jihad militant—due to a technical malfunction, with the missile landing “dozens of meters away” from its mark.
“The IDF regrets any harm to uninvolved civilians,” the military said in a statement, adding that the incident was under review. The attack struck a water distribution point in Nuseirat refugee camp, where desperate residents had gathered amid severe shortages. Ahmed Abu Saifan, an emergency doctor at Al-Awda Hospital, confirmed the casualties, underscoring the dire humanitarian crisis as fuel shortages cripple desalination plants and sanitation systems.
In a separate strike, Palestinian media reported that a prominent hospital consultant was among 12 killed when an Israeli missile hit a busy Gaza City market. The Gaza Health Ministry said Sunday that over 58,000 people have been killed since the war began in October 2023, with 139 deaths in the past 24 hours. While the ministry does not differentiate between civilians and combatants, it states that women and children account for more than half the fatalities.
Ceasefire Talks at an Impasse
Negotiations for a truce appeared deadlocked over disagreements on Israel’s withdrawal from Gaza, Palestinian and Israeli sources said. Mediated talks in Doha, based on a U.S. proposal for a 60-day ceasefire, have stalled, with both sides accusing the other of inflexibility.
The conflict erupted after Hamas’ October 7 attack on Israel, which killed 1,200 people and saw 251 taken hostage. Israel believes at least 20 of the remaining 50 hostages are still alive. Meanwhile, its military campaign has displaced nearly all of Gaza’s 2.3 million residents, many of whom report no safe havens remain.
Nowhere to Flee
Anas Matar stood in the rubble of a Gaza City home where his relatives had sought refuge after fleeing Israeli evacuation orders. “My aunt, her husband, and the children are gone,” he said. “What was their crime? They came here to escape, and still they were hit. There is no safe place in Gaza.”
As casualties mount and aid dwindles, international pressure grows for a breakthrough in negotiations—but with both sides entrenched, hopes for a near-term resolution fade.
