Donald Trump has suggested a ceasefire in Gaza may be imminent.
The US president told reporters that “great progress” had been made in talks as a result of the end of the recent 12-day conflict between Israel and Iran. On 22 June, the US carried out strikes on three Iranian nuclear enrichment sites.
“Because of this attack that we made [in Iran], I think we’re going to have some good news… Gaza’s very close,” he added.
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While missile strikes between Israel and Iran have dominated headlines in recent days, the war in Gaza has ground relentlessly on.
On Wednesday, Israeli officials said seven soldiers were killed by an explosive device in Khan Younis, in the south of the territory.
That was the highest number of deaths for its forces in a single incident since the breakdown of a previous truce in March.
Meanwhile, the Hamas-run Gaza health ministry said another 33 people had been killed and 267 people injured while seeking aid at food distribution points.
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Sky News’s Gaza Team observed bodies being laid out at Nasser Hospital, and people being treated, after reports of gunfire at an aid point near the Netzarim Corridor in central Gaza.
Rabih Abed-Rabo, a Palestinian man, told Sky News that tens of thousands of people had gone to the site to seek food.
“I’m really thanking God I managed to get this bag. I have to feed 15 people. We’ve been trying for three months,” he said.
“I went back and forth to that area 10 times. Near the tanks, near the Israelis, through intense gunfire. Thank God.”
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The Gaza health ministry said a total of 549 people had now been killed at food distribution centres since March.
The aid stations are operated by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), a private organisation backed by Israel and now funded directly by the US too.
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A UN official has described the aid delivery mechanism as a “death trap”.
The Israeli military did not comment on the latest incident but told Sky News: “The Ministry of Health in Gaza is controlled and directed by Hamas, and is therefore subject to its agenda.
“In consequence, as has been proved and demonstrated repeatedly, the data of the ministry is replete with inconsistencies and false determinations.”
