Just hours after Trump announced Hamas was willing to negotiate peace, Israel struck the Gaza strip

Bodies buried in mass grave at al-Shifa Hospital

Gaza has run out of places to bury their dead, and have resorted to mass gaves (Image: Getty)

Israeli airstrikes targeted Gaza killing at least 20 people over the past 12 hours, according to local health authorities.

It comes hours after US President Donald Trump called for the bombing to stop, saying that Hamas was ready for peace.

On Friday, Hamas responded to Trump's 20-point ceasefire plan, saying that it had agreed to release all Israeli hostages, alive or dead, and expressed willingness to negotiate through mediators.

Trump on Friday triumphantly announced that Hamas was “ready for a lasting PEACE” adding that Israel, “must immediately stop the bombing of Gaza.”

Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said early Saturday that Israel was preparing “to immediately implement the first phase of Trump’s plan for the immediate release of all hostages.”

Despite this, attacks have continued on the Gaza strip. The IDF said Saturday that it continued to surround Gaza City, and that “attempting to return to it poses a significant risk.”

Israeli strikes killed at least 66 people and injured over 250 in the past 24 hours, Gaza’s Ministry of Health said Saturday, adding that the total death toll in the enclave had passed 67,000 after the addition of more than 700 people whose data had been verified, NBC reported.

On Saturday, Trump said that Israel had "temporarily stopped the bombing in order to give the Hostage release and Peace Deal a chance to be completed."

"Hamas must move quickly, or else all bets will be off. I will not tolerate delay, which many think will happen, or any outcome where Gaza poses a threat again. Let’s get this done, FAST. Everyone will be treated fairly!" he wrote on Truth Social.

The Ministry of Health, which is part of the Hamas-run government, reported two deaths of children due to famine and malnutrition in the past 24 hours. This brings the total number of deaths from malnutrition to 459, including 154 children, it said.

This Tuesday marks two years since the start of the war between Israel and Hamas, which began October 7, 2023, with Hamas-led terrorist attacks at a music festival, in which 1,200 people were killed, and 251 were abducted.

Trump’s 20-point plan would require the release of the 48 hostages that remain in Gaza within three days.