Despite an announced ceasefire by Hamas and Israel, Israeli forces reportedly killed at least 82 people in Gaza, according to medical sources who spoke with Al Jazeera. Of those, at least 30 were killed in Gaza City shortly after the ceasefire was announced.
One of the deadliest airstrikes hit a house close to the Engineers Union Building in Gaza City on Wednesday night, leaving at least 18 dead, according to a report by Al Jazeera Arabic’s correspondent. The Palestinian Civil Defense confirmed retrieving 12 bodies from the neighbourhood of Sheikh Radwan in Gaza City.
In central Gaza, five were killed by an Israeli drone strike on a gathering in the Bureij camp. The rising death toll began from dawn Wednesday as Palestinians began returning to their makeshift shelters after a brief celebration over the news of the ceasefire.
Reporting from Deir el-Balah in central Gaza, Al Jazeera’s Hani Mahmoud said the air was filled with an atmosphere of celebration, contrasting sharply with the area’s recent history marked by mourning. “For a couple of hours, people transformed this space into a stage of celebration, something we are not used to seeing here,” he said. Yet, apprehension remains that the situation could deteriorate further ahead of Sunday’s official implementation of the ceasefire.
Mahmoud said residents cut the celebrations short due to fears of intensified drone attacks and heavy artillery bombardments. Anas al-Sharif, Al Jazeera’s reporter in Gaza City, reported the same: “It was a moment of relief for residents in Gaza. The euphoria was short-lived because the Israeli strikes were intense after the ceasefire declaration was announced.
“Just hours ago, there was a state of jubilation amongst the residents here when the announcement of the ceasefire was made,” al-Sharif reported. “But just in its aftermath, Israeli warplanes struck hospitals, shelters and homes, extinguishing that.
Both Israel and Hamas publicly said a ceasefire and prisoner swap agreement had been reached, with Israel adding that final details were still being negotiated. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, in a statement, has confirmed the discussions with the negotiating team in Doha on the disagreements over the details of the releases of Palestinian prisoners during the initial phase of the agreement.
As of January 1, 2025, more than 10,221 Palestinian prisoners were in Israeli jails, not accounting for the unknown number taken from Gaza. Those detained include Dr. Hussam Abu Safia, the director of the Kamal Adwan Hospital in northern Gaza that was destroyed by Israeli forces.
Izzat al-Risheq, a member of Hamas’s political bureau, said that under the terms of the ceasefire agreement all of the group’s demands had been met, including the withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza and the return of displaced residents to their homes. Initial confusion surrounded the time at which the ceasefire would take effect on Sunday, with implementation reportedly expected to come in three stages.
