Deadly Gaza Strikes Undermine Ceasefire Hopes After Kushner Visit

New U.S. efforts to broker a ceasefire in Gaza face significant challenges following deadly Israeli airstrikes on Wednesday that killed at least 10 people. The strikes, which occurred just two days after U.S. negotiators reportedly asked Israel to scale back its operations, have further dimmed prospects for a de-escalation in the Palestinian territory.

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The commanders killed included Mohammad Hamdi Ahmad Al-Masri, Mohammad Attar and Mohammad Fathi Hussein Nasser, all accused of carrying out terrorist attacks against Israeli troops, and Samed Samir Harb Abu Habal, who infiltrated Israeli territory during the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas attack, according to a statement from Israel's military.

Local hospitals and the Palestinian Red Crescent confirmed the casualties from two separate strikes. Israel's military stated that one strike in the Nuseirat refugee camp targeted a Hamas commander involved in the October 7th attack. Another strike in Gaza City reportedly hit four Hamas militants gathered at a police station, whom the military claimed were preparing to attack Israeli troops. The Hamas-run Interior Ministry reported that the Gaza City strike killed eight police officers and a 13-year-old girl, while one person died in Nuseirat.

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The Hamas-run Interior Ministry said the Wednesday Gaza City strike on the police station killed eight police officers and a 13-year-old girl. Two officers were women, it said. One person was killed in Nuseirat.

These developments follow a meeting on Monday between Jared Kushner, a U.S. negotiator and former President Trump's son-in-law, and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. During the meeting, Kushner reportedly urged Netanyahu to reduce attacks in Gaza. Meanwhile, Israel's military announced it had completed reviews of 150 incidents of troop conduct during the war and would launch criminal investigations into specific killings, including those of a child and paramedics in previous years.

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Jared Kushner, a US negotiator and President Donald Trump's son-in-law, held a marathon meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday, in which he asked Israel's leader to draw down attacks on Gaza, a person familiar with the meeting said.

The recent strikes add to the already high Palestinian death toll since the current ceasefire began in October. Gaza's Health Ministry reports that Israeli strikes have killed at least 1,273 people since the ceasefire, and the broader conflict has resulted in over 73,400 Palestinian deaths, according to the ministry.

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Israel's military said it had completed reviews of 150 incidents of troop conduct during the war in Gaza and would launch criminal investigations into the 2024 killings of a 5-year-old girl and her family, as well as of 15 Palestinian paramedics in 2025.