New Delhi: At least 18 Palestinians were killed in Israeli airstrikes across the Gaza Strip even as US President Donald Trump announced what he described
as a major breakthrough towards implementing a Hamas disarmament plan, according to Palestinian health officials.
The strikes hit multiple locations, including Gaza City, Deir al-Balah and Khan Younis, making it one of the deadliest days in weeks despite renewed diplomatic efforts to revive the ceasefire framework. Victims included civilians sheltering in homes and tent encampments, local medics said. Israel, however, indicated that military operations would continue.
“There is no agreement to stop the strikes,” Israeli Energy Minister Eli Cohen said, adding that Israel remained unconvinced Hamas would genuinely disarm and insisting that military pressure would continue until Israel’s security objectives were achieved.
The Israeli military said one strike in Deir al-Balah targeted Hamas commanders and that other attacks were aimed at militants operating in different parts of Gaza.
Trump plan faces uncertainty as Israel, Hamas differ
The renewed violence came just a day after Trump unveiled a US-backed roadmap that he said could pave the way for ending the war through the phased disarmament of Hamas and a gradual Israeli withdrawal from Gaza.
While Hamas has indicated it is prepared to engage with the proposal under certain conditions, Israel has not formally endorsed the plan and has raised concerns over its implementation. Israeli officials insist Hamas must fully surrender its weapons before any meaningful military pullback can take place.
Hamas accused Israel of continuing to “change facts on the ground through force” despite ongoing diplomatic contacts. Palestinian officials said the latest bombardment underscored the fragility of the proposed agreement and the wide gap that still exists between the two sides.
The latest attacks come amid continued international efforts to salvage the ceasefire agreement reached last year. The US-backed Board of Peace has proposed a phased roadmap involving Hamas’s disarmament, Israeli troop withdrawals and the eventual transfer of Gaza’s administration to a technocratic Palestinian authority under international supervision, though significant disagreements over sequencing and verification remain.
