Portugal Colonial - Hamas says ready for 'serious' Gaza truce talks, as rescuers say 37 killed

Negotiator Khalil al-Hayya made the declaration in a speech marking the start of Eid al-Adha festivities, typically a joyous date on the Muslim calendar, but one many Gazans say they will not be able to celebrate this year amid crushing shortages.

"We reaffirm that we are ready for a new, serious round of negotiations aimed at reaching a permanent ceasefire agreement," Hayya said, adding the group was in contact with mediators.

Talks aimed at brokering a new ceasefire have failed to yield a breakthrough since the last brief truce fell apart in March with the resumption of Israeli operations in Gaza.

Israel and Hamas appeared close to an agreement late last month, but a deal proved elusive, with each side accusing the other of scuppering a US-backed proposal.

- Stepped-up Gaza campaign -

The Israeli military has recently stepped up its campaign in what it says is a renewed push to defeat Hamas, whose October 2023 attack sparked the war.

Gaza civil defence official Mohammed al-Mughayyir said that "37 people have been martyred in Israeli strikes on the Gaza Strip" as of Thursday afternoon, reporting attacks up and down the length of the territory.

The Israeli military did not immediately respond to an AFP request for comment.

International calls for a negotiated ceasefire have grown in recent weeks, particularly as the humanitarian situation in the devastated Palestinian territory has worsened.

The World Health Organization warned Thursday that Gaza's "health system is collapsing", pointing to the risks faced by the Nasser and Al-Amal medical facilities -- the "last two functioning public hospitals in Khan Yunis", where many displaced Gazans are sheltering.

"What is happening in Gaza is not a war. It's a genocide being carried out by a highly prepared army against women and children," said Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, who has previously used the legal term to describe the conflict.

French President Emmanuel Macron, who has declined to use the term himself, vowed at a joint appearance with Lula to "ramp up pressure in coordination with the Americans to obtain a ceasefire".

France is due later this month to co-host with Saudi Arabia a United Nations conference in New York on a two-state solution to the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians.

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer on Thursday warned Israel of "further concrete actions" over its Gaza offensive and restrictions on aid.

- 'Rejoice over flour' -

Israel has faced mounting international pressure to allow more aid into Gaza, after it imposed a more than two-month blockade that led to widespread shortages of food and other essentials.

On a normal Eid al-Adha, Gazans would be preparing for large family gatherings, traditionally centred around the sacrifice and eating of a sheep.

But this year, "one kilo of meat has become a dream", said Mohammed Othman, 36.

"We just hope to find bread to feed our children on the day of Eid, and they will rejoice over flour as if it were meat."

Israel recently eased its aid blockade and has worked with the newly formed, US-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) to implement a new distribution mechanism via a handful of centres in south and central Gaza.

But since its inception, GHF has been a magnet for criticism from the UN and other members of the aid world -- which only intensified following a recent string of deadly incidents near its facilities.

The United Nations and other aid groups have declined to work with GHF, citing concerns it serves Israeli military goals.

GHF shut down its distribution centres on Wednesday for what it called "reorganisation" to improve its work, but said it had reopened two of them on Thursday.

The group said it had distributed more than 8.4 million meals' worth of food since opening a little over a week ago.

Gaza rescuers and eyewitnesses implicated Israeli troops in instances of deadly gunfire near a GHF centre in Rafah.

Israel's military has maintained it does not prevent Gazans from collecting aid, but army spokesperson Effie Defrin said after one such incident on Tuesday that soldiers had fired towards suspects who "were approaching in a way that endangered" the troops.

He added that the incident was under investigation.

- Hostage bodies recovered -

During their October 2023 attack, militants abducted 251 hostages, 55 of whom remain in Gaza, including 32 the Israeli military says are dead.

On Thursday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the remains of two Israeli-Americans killed on October 7 -- Judy Weinstein Haggai and Gad Haggai -- had been recovered in "a special operation" in Gaza and returned to Israel.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said their return was "a stark reminder of the enduring cruelty" faced by the families of hostages still in Gaza.

Hamas's unprecedented attack on Israel resulted in the deaths of 1,218 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official figures.

According to the health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza, at least 4,402 people have been killed since Israel resumed its offensive on March 18, taking the war's overall toll to 54,677, mostly civilians.

V.Fontes--PC