Israeli military strikes across the Gaza Strip killed at least 17 Palestinians, eight of them at a school sheltering displaced families in Gaza City, doctors said, as the Israeli military ordered the evacuation of a hospital in the north.

Palestinian doctors said eight people, including children, were killed at the Musa Bin Nusayr School, which was sheltering displaced families in Gaza City.

The Israeli military said in a statement that the attack targeted Hamas militants operating from a command center embedded in the school. Hamas militants were said to have used the site to plan and carry out attacks on Israeli forces.

Also in Gaza City, medics said four Palestinians were killed when an airstrike hit a car.

At least five other Palestinians were killed in two separate airstrikes in Rafah and Khan Younis south of the enclave.

Hospital evacuation

In the northern Gaza city of Beit Lahiya, where the army has been operating since October, Hussam Abu Safiya, director of Kamal Adwan Hospital, said the army ordered staff to evacuate the hospital and move patients and the injured to another hospital in the area.

Abu Safiya said the mission was “almost impossible” because staff did not have ambulances to move patients.

For almost three months, the Israeli army operated in two cities in the north of Gaza, Beit Lahiya and Beit Hanoun, as well as in the nearby Jabalia camp.

Palestinians have accused Israel of carrying out acts of “ethnic cleansing” to empty the areas to create a buffer zone.

Israel denies this and says the campaign in the area was aimed at fighting Hamas militants and preventing them from regrouping. He said his forces have killed hundreds of militants and dismantled military infrastructure since the operation began.

The armed wings of Hamas and Islamic Jihad said they killed many Israeli soldiers in ambushes during the same period.

Mediators have yet to secure a ceasefire between Israel and the Islamist group Hamas.

WATCH | Palestinians reacted to the ceasefire talks earlier this week with cautious optimism:

As ceasefire talks continue, Palestinians in Gaza are cautiously optimistic

Talks to broker a cease-fire and hostage-release deal between Israel and Hamas have resumed in Cairo, and sources close to the talks say the deal could be signed in the coming days. Palestinians in southern Gaza say they hope this round of talks will lead to an end to the war so life can resume.

Sources close to the discussions told Reuters on Thursday that Qatar and Egypt had managed to resolve some differences between the warring parties, but concerns remained.

Israel launched its assault on Gaza after Hamas-led fighters attacked Israeli communities on October 7, 2023, killing 1,200 people and taking more than 250 hostages, according to Israeli figures. Israel says about 100 hostages are still in custody, but it is unclear how many are alive.

Authorities in Gaza say the Israeli campaign has killed more than 45,000 Palestinians and displaced most of the population of 2.3 million. Much of the coastal enclave is in ruins.