Gaza civil defence says 5 killed in Israeli shelling on school-turned-shelter

Gaza City: Gaza’s civil defence agency said Israeli shelling on a school-turned-shelter killed five people on Friday.

Spokesman for the agency, Mahmud Bassal, told AFP that “five martyrs have been recovered as a result of the Israeli shelling of the shelter at the Gaza Martyrs School,” in the Tuffah neighbourhood east of Gaza City.

When asked by AFP about the incident, the Israeli military said that “during operational activity in the area of the Yellow line in the northern Gaza Strip, a number of suspicious individuals were identified in command structures west of the Yellow line.”

Under the US-brokered ceasefire between Israel and Hamas in Gaza, Israeli forces have withdrawn to positions east of the so-called Yellow Line.

“The (Israeli military) regrets any harm to uninvolved individuals and operates to mitigate harm to the extent possible,” it said.

The ceasefire, which came into effect in October, remains fragile with both sides alleging violations, and mediators fearing that Israel and Hamas alike are stalling.

US President Donald Trump’s special envoy, Steve Witkoff, was to meet officials from Qatar, Egypt and Turkey in Florida on Friday, hoping to salvage efforts to reach the second stage of the deal.

“Our people expect these talks to result in an agreement to put an end to ongoing Israeli lawlessness, halt all violations and compel the occupation to abide by the Sharm El-Sheikh agreement,” Hamas political bureau member Bassem Naim told AFP.

The health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza said on Thursday that at least 395 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli fire in the territory since the ceasefire came into effect on October 10.

Israel has also repeatedly accused Hamas of violating the ceasefire, with the military reporting three soldiers killed in the territory since the truce entered into force.