Israeli strike kills one in Gaza as sides trade blame for truce violations

An Israeli airstrike killed a Palestinian man in the Gaza Strip on Sunday, health authorities said, as Israel and Hamas traded blame for violations of the tenuous truce that has mostly halted two years of war.

The Israeli military claimed its aircraft had struck a "militant" who was posing a threat to its forces. Al-Ahli Hospital said one man was killed in the airstrike near a vegetable market in the Shejaia suburb of Gaza City.

Hamas released what it described as a list of violations of the cease-fire by Israel. Ismail al-Thawabta, the director of Gaza's government media office, denied that Hamas fighters had violated the truce by attacking Israeli soldiers.

The cease-fire, which came into effect on Oct. 10, has calmed most fighting, allowing hundreds of thousands of Palestinians to return to the ruins of their homes in Gaza. Israel has withdrawn troops from positions in cities and more aid has been allowed in.

Militants turned over all 20 living hostages held in Gaza in return for nearly 2,000 Palestinian convicts and wartime detainees held by Israel. Hamas has also agreed to turn over the bodies of hostages, a process which is still incomplete and which it says is difficult, while Israel accuses it of stalling.

But violence has not completely halted. Palestinian health authorities say Israeli forces have killed 236 people in strikes on Gaza since the truce, nearly half of them in a single day last week. Israel claims three of its soldiers have been killed.

The cease-fire was mediated by the United States, and both sides have appealed to Washington to halt violations.

The U.S. Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Dan Caine, met on Saturday with Israel's military chief Eyal Zamir during a visit to the region to discuss Gaza, the Israeli military said.

Netanyahu said any Israeli action in Gaza is reported to Washington. Hamas said the United States was not doing enough to ensure Israel abides by the cease-fire agreement.

About 200 U.S. troops have set up base in southern Israel to monitor the cease-fire and help make plans for an international force to stabilise the enclave, as foreseen in later phases of U.S. President Donald Trump's plan to end the war.

There has been little sign of progress on the next stages so far, and major obstacles still lie ahead, including the disarmament of Hamas and a timeline for Israeli withdrawal from Gaza.