International

Israel strikes Gaza as US says it will veto additional UN cease-fire resolution

Palestinians pray for the relatives killed in the Israeli bombardments of the Gaza Strip in front of the morgue at Al Aqsa hospital in Deir al Balah, Gaza Strip, on Sunday, Feb. 18, 2024.

Israel launched strikes across Gaza Saturday night that killed at least 18 people as the United States said it would veto an additional United Nations cease-fire resolution. 

The Associated Press reported that an airstrike in Rafah killed six people overnight — including a woman and three children — while another strike in Khan Younis killed five men. The AP reported another airstrike in Gaza City killed seven people in a family home, according to Sayed al-Afifi, a family member of the deceased.

The airstrikes come as the U.S. has said it will veto a draft resolution circulated by Algeria calling for an immediate cease-fire and unhindered humanitarian assistance. According to the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry,  at least 28,985 Palestinians have been killed in the war so far, the AP noted.

Instead, the U.S. is aiming to help broker a hostage deal between Israel and militant group Hamas. U.S. Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield said in a statement Saturday that the draft resolution will “not be adopted.”

“The United States will continue to engage in the diplomacy necessary to get a hostage deal over the finish line, and will be candid with Israeli and regional leaders regarding our expectations for the protection of more than one million civilians in Rafah,” Thomas-Greenfield said.

“It is critical that other parties give this process the best odds of succeeding, rather than push measures that put it — and the opportunity for an enduring resolution of hostilities — in jeopardy,” she continued.

The U.S., Qatar and Egypt have been attempting to negotiate a temporary cease-fire agreement and a hostage release. However, the AP reported that Qatar said Saturday that the talks “have not been progressing as expected.”

The Oct. 7 attacks on Israel left about 1,200 people dead while about another 250 were taken as hostages. A temporary cease-fire agreement last year released dozens of hostages, but a large number still remain in Gaza.

The Associated Press contributed