Israeli Airstrikes Continue in Gaza Despite Ceasefire Remaining in Effect

The Israeli military has continued a series of attacks on the Gaza Strip despite a ceasefire theoretically still in place, as Palestinian factions prepare to meet in Egypt to discuss the territory's future.

According to the Palestinian news agency Wafa, an Israeli drone strike on Friday morning killed a young woman and wounded at least 15 others in the Khan Younis area of southern Gaza. On the same day, another Israeli attack near Gaza City injured a child.

Al Jazeera correspondent Hani Mahmoud, reporting from Gaza City, said the ongoing attacks have created a "grim reality" in Gaza and left Palestinians confused about the status of the so-called ceasefire. "We are witnessing overnight airstrikes, drone attacks, the closure of crossings preventing people from moving outside Gaza for medical evacuations or receiving humanitarian aid," the correspondent said. "Spending just a few hours here… it's easy to recognize the repeated incidents that cause casualties, deaths, forced displacement, and a state of widespread fear."

The latest attacks came after at least 11 people were killed on Thursday, including five members of the same family targeted in residential apartments, according to the Gaza Civil Defense. The Israeli military stated that a person killed in northern Gaza on Thursday was a gunman allegedly planning an attack on Israeli forces and directing attacks in Israel.

Although the ceasefire technically took effect in October, the Israeli military has frequently struck Gaza, with more than half the territory under Israeli military control despite the ceasefire terms. According to the Gaza Health Ministry, Israeli attacks have killed at least 947 people and wounded 2,935 since the ceasefire began.

The first phase of the ceasefire involved the release of the last Israeli hostages held by Hamas in exchange for Palestinians detained by Israel. The transition to the second phase of the ceasefire, which was supposed to involve the disarmament of Hamas and a gradual withdrawal of Israeli troops, has been stalled for months.

In a statement on Telegram on Friday, Hamas confirmed that several officials from the group had arrived in Cairo for scheduled meetings with Egyptian officials and mediators this weekend to "complete the implementation" of the first phase of the ceasefire agreement. The Palestinian group said it would also discuss how to "prevent the repeated Israeli attacks on Gaza and establish appropriate mechanisms to enter the second phase of the agreement."

Earlier, Hamas political bureau member Husam Badran told Al Jazeera that the group would not hand over weapons at this time but would commit to having a future Palestinian police force, operating under a technocratic committee governing Gaza, as the only entity allowed to carry arms publicly. "We are not talking about handing over weapons; we are talking about, at least, weapons not being displayed except for the official weapons of the Palestinian police," Badran said. "The details of this matter will be discussed within a national framework."