Israel says the seizure of territory in Gaza is aimed at pressuring Hamas to release hostages, but it is a major point of contention in ongoing cease-fire talks.

The central city is one of the few parts of Gaza so far spared a major ground operation during the Israel-Hamas war.

A ccording to reports in Palestinian media, 16 people were killed in an Israeli airstrike earlier this morning in the Shati refugee camp in western Gaza City. Two additional fatalities and several injuries were also reported in a separate strike in Deir al-Balah, in the central Gaza Strip.