Israeli strike on Gaza school leaves 17 dead

An Israeli strike on a school, where displaced people were taking shelter, in the central Gaza Strip killed at least 17 persons — 13 children and three women — on Thursday, Palestinian medical officials said.

Another 42 people were wounded in the strike on the built-up Nuseirat refugee camp, according to the Awda Hospital. The Israeli military said it targeted Hamas militants inside the school, without providing evidence.

The strike came as US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Israel had accomplished its objective of “effectively dismantling” Hamas, and that negotiations over a ceasefire and the release of Israeli hostages would resume in the coming days. “What we really have to determine is whether Hamas is prepared to engage?” Blinken said on his 11th visit to the region since the start of the war.

Meanwhile, a spokesperson of Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said that an Israeli delegation would travel to Doha on Sunday.

$1 billion aid pledged for Lebanon

• Franch Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot said a conference for Lebanon raised $1 billion in pledges for aid and military support to help the country.
• Meanwhile, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced an additional aid of $135 million for Palestine.