Trump Claims Israel Backs Ceasefire As US-Backed Assault Slaughters 109 in Gaza
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Israel’s military rampaged across the besieged Gaza Strip on Tuesday, massacring at least 109 Palestinians, even as US President Donald Trump boasted that Israel had agreed to conditions for a 60-day ceasefire.
Israeli forces obliterated homes in northern and southern Gaza, unleashing widespread terror and destruction as Washington signaled its continued complicity.
Trump posted on Truth Social that the US would work “with all parties” to end the assault, demanding Hamas accept the ceasefire framework.
Among those slaughtered were 16 starving civilians who were shot dead while seeking food at aid distribution points run by the US- and Israeli-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, an entity accused of worsening famine under the blockade.
Medical sources said nearly 600 Palestinians have been killed at such sites since GHF seized control of limited relief in late May.
A coalition of more than 170 international charities condemned GHF for operating in blatant defiance of humanitarian principles.
“Palestinians in Gaza face an impossible choice: starve or risk being shot while trying desperately to reach food to feed their families,” their joint statement declared.
The Israeli military also struck Gaza City, where it had forced mass evacuations before reducing entire neighborhoods to rubble.
A quadcopter attack killed at least five people gathered near demolished homes, according to local news agency Wafa.
The UN estimates that 82 percent of Gaza is now under occupation or evacuation orders, leaving the population trapped in an ever-shrinking graveyard.
In Khan Younis, Israeli strikes killed 12 members of the al-Zanati family and a child at a displacement camp, while other attacks claimed more lives west of Nuseirat and at a UN-run school sheltering displaced families.
The Israeli army said it carried out more than 140 attacks in the previous 24 hours, callously labeling all victims “terror targets.”
Hospitals are collapsing under the weight of casualties and Israel’s blockade of fuel and medical supplies.
Al Jazeera’s Hani Mahmoud reported that al-Shifa Hospital, once Gaza’s largest medical facility, has become “a waiting room for death,” as fuel for backup generators runs out.
Trump insisted a ceasefire deal could be finalized next week during Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s planned visit to Washington.
Israeli strategic affairs minister Ron Dermer is in the US for talks on Gaza and Iran, reinforcing Washington’s partnership in the carnage.
Hamas official Sami Abu Zuhri said any breakthrough requires the US to abandon its blind backing of Israel.
“We call upon the US administration to atone for its sin towards Gaza by declaring an end to the war,” he said.
Despite talk of a truce, Netanyahu has offered no serious indication of ending the bombardment that has already killed over 56,000 Palestinians since October 2023.
Hamas has vowed it will not accept any deal without a full Israeli withdrawal and permanent ceasefire.
Meanwhile, Qatar has circulated a proposal envisioning a 60-day truce and the release of 10 captives, meant to lay the groundwork for ending Israel’s US-supported onslaught and forging a new governance framework for Gaza.
