At least 42 Palestinians killed as Israel ramps up bombing in central Gaza 

At least 42 people have been killed in Israeli attacks across the Gaza Strip, medical sources told Al Jazeera Arabic, as Israeli forces stepped up their bombardment of central areas and tanks pushed deeper into the enclave’s north and south.

Six people were killed in two air strikes on a house and near Kamal Adwan Hospital in Beit Lahiya in the northern Gaza Strip while four others were killed when an Israeli strike hit a motorcycle in Khan Younis in the south, the Reuters news agency reported on Thursday, quoting medics.

Later, an Israeli air strike near a tent camp housing displaced families in eastern Khan Younis killed at least five people and wounded others.

In Nuseirat refugee camp, Israeli warplanes carried out several air attacks, destroying a multistorey building and hitting roads outside mosques. At least 11 people were killed in the strikes, according to health officials at al-Awda Hospital in the camp.

They said in a statement that dozens of families were trapped in their homes after tanks advanced from the northern area of the camp and ambulances were unable to reach them because of continued tank fire.

As Israel escalated its bombardment of the besieged territory, the United Nations warned that more than two million people were trapped in the Gaza Strip with little access to food and no access to safe drinking water.

“Food is scarce, and famine is imminent. Most of Gaza’s water supply is unsafe to drink. With nowhere to go, families are living in abandoned homes or out in the open,” the UN said.

Reporting from central Gaza, Al Jazeera’s Tareq Abu Azzoum said families have gone days living off just drinking water and dates.

“Also, civilians have been reporting on their family members being buried under the debris of their houses after being targeted by Israeli artillery and fighter jets without being able to be rescued,” he said.

Israel’s war on Gaza continued to rage a day after Israel and the Lebanese armed group Hezbollah began a ceasefire, halting more than a year of fighting and raising hopes among many Palestinians in Gaza for a similar deal between Israel and Hamas, which governs the enclave.

Months of efforts to negotiate a ceasefire have yielded scant progress.

Announcing the Lebanon accord on Tuesday, US President Joe Biden said he would now renew his push for a ceasefire in Gaza as he urged Israel and Hamas to seize the moment.

Late on Thursday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said conditions for reaching a deal to secure the release of Israeli captives in the Gaza Strip have considerably improved.

Asked about a possible deal in an interview with local Channel 14, Netanyahu said: “I think the conditions have very much changed for the better.”

Israel’s assault on Gaza has killed at least 44,330 Palestinians and wounded 104,933 since October 2023. Israel launched the war after at least 1,139 people were killed in Hamas-led attacks on Israel on October 7, 2023, and about 250 others were taken captive.