52 dead in Israeli strikes on Gaza, 33 killed in school shelter

At least 52 people were killed in Israeli strikes on Gaza on Monday, including 33 who died when a school-turned-shelter in Gaza City was hit, according to local rescuers.

Most of those killed at the school were children, the Gaza civil defence agency said.

The Israeli military said it targeted a command centre for Hamas and Islamic Jihad fighters at the site, adding, “numerous steps were taken to mitigate the risk of harming civilians”.

The attack on the school came as a separate strike in Jabalia, in northern Gaza, killed at least 19 others, bringing the total reported deaths to 52.

Gaza’s civil defence spokesman Mahmud Bassal said dozens more were injured in both attacks.

Monday’s strikes came as mediators proposed a new 70-day ceasefire between Israel and Hamas that would include the release of 10 Israeli hostages in exchange for some Palestinian prisoners.

A Palestinian source said the proposal was presented by US envoy Steve Witkoff. A Hamas source said the group had accepted the proposal, which would mark the third truce since the war began.

The Israeli military said its air force had struck more than 200 targets across Gaza over the past 48 hours.

It also reported three projectiles fired from Gaza on Monday, with one intercepted and two falling inside the territory.

Later in the day, Israel issued an evacuation order for areas in Khan Yunis, saying they had been launch sites for rockets.

Israel's renewed offensive, aimed at destroying Hamas, has drawn international criticism as food and medical supplies remain scarce due to an aid blockade in place since early March.

While Israel has recently eased some restrictions, aid groups say the limited supplies are not enough.

In Germany, Chancellor Friedrich Merz expressed rare public criticism of Israel, saying, "I no longer understand what the Israeli army is now doing in the Gaza Strip, with what goal."

He added that the suffering of civilians “can no longer be justified”. However, German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul said Berlin would continue supplying arms to Israel.

In Spain, Arab and European leaders meeting to discuss the conflict called for an immediate end to the fighting.

Spanish Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albares urged a total arms embargo on Israel and called for humanitarian aid to enter Gaza “massively, without conditions and without limits, and not controlled by Israel”. He described Gaza as humanity’s “open wound”.

The Israeli military said 107 trucks carrying aid from the UN and other international groups entered Gaza on Sunday. But aid agencies said that is far below what is needed.

Before the war resumed in March, hundreds of trucks entered daily during a temporary truce.

The UN said that only 5% of Gaza’s farmland is currently usable, making local food production nearly impossible.

Jake Wood, head of a US-backed aid group preparing to deliver food to Gaza, resigned on Monday, saying he could not do the work while respecting neutrality and independence.

The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, which plans to deliver 300 million meals in its first 90 days, announced it would start “direct aid delivery” the same day.

The UN and major humanitarian agencies have refused to cooperate with the group and criticised its approach.

Gaza’s health ministry said 3,822 people have been killed since the collapse of the last ceasefire on March 18, pushing the war’s overall death toll to 53,977, most of them civilians.

The conflict began after a Hamas attack on Israel in October 2023 that killed 1,218 people and resulted in 251 hostages being taken.

According to Israeli military figures, 57 of those hostages remain in Gaza, including 34 who are believed to be dead.