Eight more killed in Gaza amid ceasefire talks in Egypt

Palestinian militant group Hamas and Israel are continuing talks in Egypt for a third day to reach a ceasefire agreement to end the two-year Israeli offensive in Gaza. Meanwhile, Israeli forces have killed eight more Palestinians and injured at least 61 others in indiscriminate attacks in the past 24 hours. At the same time, the bodies of two more were recovered from the rubble of previous Israeli attacks.

Egypt's state-run Al-Qahira News Channel reported that extended Gaza ceasefire talks began in the Red Sea resort city of Sharm el-Sheikh on Wednesday (October 8). Hamas and Israeli negotiators were joined by Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman, Egyptian intelligence chief Hassan Rashad and Turkish intelligence chief Ibrahim Kalin. The US side is led by special envoy Steve Witkoff and Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner. The Israeli side is led by Strategy Minister Ron Dermer.

On September 29, US President Donald Trump made a 20-point proposal to end the war. Talks between Israeli and Hamas representatives have been ongoing since Monday (October 6) after Hamas agreed in principle to the plan, which includes the release of all Israeli prisoners, a ceasefire, the disarmament of Hamas, and the reconstruction of Gaza in exchange for the release of Palestinian prisoners. Majed al-Ansari, spokesman for the Qatari Foreign Ministry, which is the mediator, also said that the relevant representatives had agreed on various aspects of the agreement.

Citing Israeli media, Al Jazeera reported that the death toll rose to 66,183 people as of Tuesday evening (October 7), the second anniversary of the start of the war, as intense Israeli attacks on Gaza continued, with at least 169,841 people injured.

The Gaza Health Ministry said that 455 people, 151 of whom were children, have died in the blockaded enclave of Israeli-induced famine and malnutrition during the same period. Of these, 177 people, including 36 children, have died since the UN-backed Hunger Monitoring System (IPC) declared northern Gaza a famine zone last month.

At least 11 aid seekers were injured in Israeli army fire in one day while trying to receive humanitarian aid from the Israeli and US-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), according to Turkey's Anadolu news agency. Since the controversial GHF operation began on May 27, the number of aid seekers who have died has reached 2,613, while another 19,164 have been injured.

On October 7, 2023, Hamas attacked the Gaza Strip, killing 1,200 Israelis and taking 251 hostages. There are still 48 prisoners in Gaza. At least 20 of them are believed to be alive. Israel is continuing its military operation across Gaza, claiming to rescue them.

Despite announcing a ceasefire on January 19 of this year under pressure from the United States and other mediating countries, Israel has been conducting military operations again since March 18. So far, 13,588 Palestinians have been killed and 56,800 injured in this second phase of the campaign.