DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — Israeli ground troops for the first time Monday pushed into areas of a central Gaza city where several aid groups are based, in what appeared to be the latest effort to carve up the Palestinian territory with military corridors.

The Israeli military has killed at least 67 people waiting for UN aid lorries in northern Gaza, the territory's Hamas-run health ministry says. The UN World Food Programme said its 25-truck convoy "encountered massive crowds of hungry civilians which came under gunfire", soon after it crossed from Israel and cleared checkpoints.

Israeli-American Keith Siegel was seized in the Hamas attack, he says a deal to bring home the remaining hostages must be made "as soon as possible."

Israel-Hamas ceasefire talks face challenges over aid distribution as tensions rise between the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation and U.N. regarding humanitarian assistance.

"The flexibility and constructive approach shown by Israel in the negotiations are not matched by Hamas,” the official said. Israel has made "significant strides" in its efforts to reach a hostage deal;

An Israeli report released Tuesday accuses Hamas of using sexual violence as a weapon of war during its Oct. 7, 2023 attacks.

The ongoing presence of negotiators from Hamas and Israel in the Qatari capital, Doha, suggests that both sides are serious about clinching a deal.

Israeli researchers released a report on Tuesday detailing sexual assault allegations against Palestinian Hamas fighters who attacked Israeli communities on October 7, 2023, and offering a "legal blueprint" for potential prosecutions.

Israel attacked the World Health Organization’s premises in Gaza three times on Monday, the UN agency said, warning that Israel’s expanding war with Hamas was pushing the Palestinian enclave’s health system further towards collapse.