Latest developments in Israel-Hamas war

Fighting raged Sunday in Gaza, more than six weeks after a shock Hamas attack sparked an air and ground offensive by Israel, which has vowed to destroy the Palestinian militant group.

In Gaza, around 12,300 people, more than 5,000 of them children, have been killed in the conflict, officials in the Hamas-run territory have said.

About 1,200 people, mostly civilians, were killed in Israel during the Oct. 7 attack and around 240 taken hostage, according to Israeli officials.

Here are five key developments from the past 24 hours:

Al-Shifa 'death zone'

The World Health Organization said it had led an assessment mission to al-Shifa Hospital — Gaza's largest and the focal point of the war in past days — and determined it was a "death zone," urging a full evacuation.

The United Nations health agency said it was developing an evacuation plan for nearly 300 remaining patients and 25 health workers after the Israeli military had earlier ordered the evacuation of some 2,500 displaced people sheltering on the hospital grounds.

Columns of sick and injured — some of them amputees — were seen making their way out of al-Shifa Hospital on Saturday towards the seafront without ambulances, along with displaced people, doctors and nurses, as loud explosions were heard around the complex.

Premature babies evacuated

All premature babies at the hospital were later evacuated, a health official in the Hamas-governed territory said.

Mohammed Zaqut, director general of hospitals in Gaza, told AFP "all 31 premature babies in Al-Shifa hospital.. have been evacuated" along with three doctors and two nurses, and "preparations are under way" for them to enter Egypt.

Eight babies had died in the past few days after power supplies ran out at al-Shifa, with not enough electricity to continue operating the incubators, Gaza's Health Ministry said.

Refugee camp hit twice

A Health Ministry official in the Hamas-run Gaza Strip said more than 80 people were killed in two separate Israeli strikes on the Jabalia refugee camp.

"At least 50 people" were killed in an Israeli strike on the UN-run Al-Fakhura school, which had been converted into a shelter for displaced Palestinians, the official told AFP.

A separate strike on another building killed 32 people from the same family, 19 of them children, the official added.

The Israeli army did not specifically comment on the strikes but said its troops were expanding operations in Gaza, including in parts of Jabalia, to "target terrorists and strike Hamas infrastructure."

Talks toward a hostage deal

The United States said it was still working to secure a deal between Israel and Hamas after a reported tentative agreement to free women and children held hostage in Gaza in exchange for a pause in fighting.

"We have not reached a deal yet, but we continue to work hard to get to a deal," White House National Security Council spokeswoman Adrienne Watson said on X, formerly Twitter, in response to The Washington Post reporting a deal had been agreed.

Qatar later said the deal hinges on "minor" practical issues, but did not provide details or a timeline.

Israel march for hostages

Thousands of Israelis including friends and relatives of hostages taken by Hamas arrived in Jerusalem, capping a four-day march to pressure the government to secure the captives' release.

Since Hamas militants surged out of Gaza six weeks ago and, according to Israel, seized some 240 hostages, their loved ones have waged a determined campaign for their freedom.

A column of thousands of demonstrators draped in white and blue Israeli flags reached Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office chanting: "Bring them home now."