Yahya Sinwar ‘wants ceasefire’ am0d international condemnation for Israeli strike on Gaza school

Hamas leader reportedly wants a deal ahead of hostage negotiation talks this week but the group won’t attend talks, as Israel is condemned for an air strike on a school housing displaced Palestinians.

mediators to implement a truce plan presented by US President Joe Biden.

Israel has accepted the invitation from the United States, Qatar and Egypt, but Hamas said it wanted the implementation of a truce plan laid out by Mr Biden on May 31 and later endorsed by the UN Security Council, “rather than going through more negotiation rounds or new proposals”.

Hamas “demands that the mediators present a plan to implement what they proposed to the movement... based on Biden’s vision and the UN Security Council resolution, and compel the (Israeli) occupation to comply”, it said.

Despite Hamas’ position, Israeli media reports that security sources believe it is possible for negotiators to finalise an agreement at the talks and that the deal could be put into action within days after that.

an air strike on a school housing displaced Palestinians, despite ­Israel’s insistence that it was targeting militants.

Rescuers said at least 93 people had been killed in Saturday’s strike, which if independently confirmed, would be one of the largest from a single strike during 10 months of war between Israel and Palestinian militants since Hamas’s October 7 attack.

The bombardment of al-Tabieen religious school and mosque drew criticism from across the Middle East and beyond, alongside calls for a ceasefire after international mediators invited the warring sides to resume talks towards a long-sought truce and hostage-release deal.

Civil defence rescuers in the Hamas-ruled territory said three Israeli missiles hit the complex in Gaza City while people were performing dawn prayers. The military confirmed it had used “three precise munitions”.

A civil defence agency spokesman said 11 children and six women were among those killed, “and there are many unidentified body parts”.

“They dropped a missile on them while they were just praying,” said one woman, mourning over a dead child shrouded in a plastic body bag.

People react as they transport the body of a family member from the al-Maamadani hospital for burial, following an Israeli strike that killed more than 90 people on a school sheltering displaced Palestinians in Gaza City. Picture: Omar Al-Qattaa/AFP

Israel’s military said it had “precisely struck” al-Tabieen, later adding that intelligence suggested “at least 19 Hamas and Islamic Jihad terrorists were eliminated”.

Hamas denounced it as a “dangerous escalation”, while the Palestinian group’s Lebanese ally Hezbollah called it a “horrific massacre”.

Iran, which backs both militant groups and had accused Israel of wanting to spread war in the Middle East following high-profile killings in Tehran and Beirut, condemned what it called a “barbaric attack”.

Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Nasser Kanani said the strike “showed once again that Israel does not respect any of the rules and regulations of international law and moral and human principles”.

Kanani called for “firm action by Muslim and freedom-loving countries around the world to support the Palestinian nation and its legitimate struggles and resistance against the occupation”.

“Those who were inside the mosque were all killed,” said local resident Abu Wassim. “Even the floor above, where women and children were sleeping, was completely burned.”

With nearly all of the Gaza Strip’s 2.4 million people displaced at least once during the war, many have sought refuge in school buildings, which have been hit at least 14 times since July 6.

Israel has made similar accusations of armed activities after strikes on school shelters, while Hamas has denied using civilian facilities for military aims.

Jordan’s foreign ministry said the timing was an indication of ­Israel’s efforts to “obstruct and thwart” the latest mediation effort.

One of the mediators, Qatar, called for an “urgent international investigation” to ascertain the “facts regarding the Israeli occupation forces’ continued targeting of schools and shelters for displaced persons”.

Turkey claimed Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu wanted “to sabotage ceasefire ­negotiations”.

Hamas officials, some analysts and critics in Israel have said Mr Netanyahu has sought to prolong the fighting for political gain.

The killing on July 31 of Hamas’s Ismail Haniyeh during a visit to Tehran had sidelined truce talks. US National Security Council spokesman Sean Savett said the Gaza City strike “underscores the urgency of a ceasefire and hostage deal”.

EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said the school strike left him “horrified”. France said “Israel must ­respect international humanitarian law”.

British Foreign Minister David Lammy wrote on X that he was “appalled by the Israeli Military strike on al-Tabieen school and the tragic loss of life”, adding that “we need an immediate ceasefire to protect civilians, free all hostages, and end restrictions on aid”.

Egypt, which has diplomatic ties with Israel and is also involved in negotiations between the two sides, said the attack was carried out “in disdain of international and humanitarian law” and showed a “lack of willingness on the Israeli side to put an end to this ferocious war”.

Hezbollah, which has traded near-daily fire with Israeli forces throughout the war, on Saturday said it had fired “squadrons of ­explosive-laden drones” at an army base in retaliation for the killing of a Hamas commander in south Lebanon on Friday.

AFP