Latest update March 27th, 2026 12:40 AM
Deadly Israeli strikes mar Gaza Eid celebrations
—Netanyahu says pressure on Hamas is ‘working’
(CNN)- Israeli airstrikes on a tent and a home housing displaced people in southern Gaza killed 10 people Sunday, including children, as Palestinians observed the first day of Eid-al-Fitr, rescuers said.
The Israeli military is stepping up its renewed campaign in Gaza, with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu saying efforts to pressure Hamas into releasing more hostages were “working” and vowing to implement Donald Trump’s hugely controversial scheme to relocate Palestinians from the territory.
Victims of an Israeli strike on the Al-Mawasi area of Khan Younis Sunday are laid to rest. Abed Rahim Khatib/Anadolu via Getty Images
Twenty people were also injured in the strike on the Al-Mawasi area, Khan Younis’s Director of Civil Defense Yamen Abu Suleiman told CNN, warning the death toll would likely rise. A local hospital confirmed the fatalities so far, saying five children had been killed. Video of the aftermath of the strike shows some of the child victims wearing new Eid clothing. In Middle Eastern tradition, children wear new clothes to celebrate the three-day holiday.
In the footage, a man is seen dragging a child toward the hospital, asking: “What was these children’s fault? They did nothing.” CNN has approached the Israel Defense Forces for comment. Palestinians in the Gaza Strip are observing Eid this year in the face of dwindling aid supplies and a mounting death toll in the strip.
“Every year, I’m used to baking Eid cookies for my children,” one displaced woman, Ameneh Shaqla, told CNN. “But because of the current situation and how expensive everything has become, I was only able to prepare one kilogram — just to bring them some joy so they don’t stay sad because of the war.”
Abdel Fattah Khalil Karnawi, a street vendor, told of the soaring prices for clothing. “We came to the market to get Eid clothes for the children. Unfortunately, the circumstances are tough and prices are very high.” Israel resumed its offensive on Gaza almost two weeks ago, shattering a two-month-old ceasefire. It imposed a complete blockade of humanitarian aid entering the enclave, warning that its forces would maintain a permanent presence in parts of Gaza until the release of the remaining 24 hostages who are believed to still be alive. Hundreds of Palestinians have been killed in the enclave since then.
Bodies of Palestinians are brought to the Nasser Hospital by their relatives in Khan Younis Sunday. Hani Alshaer/Anadolu via Getty Images ,
Al-Mawasi, a coastal region west of the city of Rafah, has repeatedly come under Israeli attacks, even though it was previously designated by Israel as a “humanitarian area.” Thousands of Palestinians have fled to Al-Mawasi, living for months in makeshift tents made of cloth and nylon, with little access to humanitarian relief. In comments made on Sunday morning, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed to step up the military campaign, saying the pressure on Hamas was “working.” “It works because it operates simultaneously: on one hand, it crushes Hamas’ military and governmental capabilities and, on the other, it creates the conditions for the release of our hostages. This is exactly what we are doing,” Netanyahu said at a government meeting. Rejecting assertions Israel was unwilling to negotiate, he added that “cracks” were showing in Hamas following the renewal of the offensive and said Israel would implement “the Trump Plan — the voluntary emigration plan,” a scheme Trump himself appears to have walked back on.
New ceasefire proposal
Sunday’s strike comes as Hamas has agreed to a new Egyptian proposal to release five hostages, including the American-Israeli Edan Alexander, in exchange for a renewed ceasefire, a Hamas source told CNN. The proposal is similar to one presented several weeks ago by US special envoy Steve Witkoff, although it is not clear whether it also includes the release of additional bodies of deceased hostages.
In exchange for the release of five hostages, Hamas expects a return to phase 1 ceasefire conditions, including the entry of humanitarian aid into Gaza, as well as an agreement from Israel to negotiate the second phase of the ceasefire, the source said. Israel has responded to the Egyptian offer with a counter-proposal, according to a statement from the Israeli prime minister’s office. “Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu conducted a series of consultations yesterday, following a proposal received from the mediators. In recent hours, Israel transferred its counter-proposal to the mediators, in full coordination with the United States,” the office said.
Netanyahu is facing competing demands at home from his right-wing coalition who want to increase pressure on Hamas and families of the remaining hostages who fear more military action could endanger their loved ones.
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