Palestinian rescuers reported more than 100 people killed in the latest Israeli strikes on blockaded Gaza, where a US-backed organisation said it intends to begin distributing aid by the end of the month.
Aid to Gaza has been cut off since 2 March, a tactic Israel has said is intended to force concessions from Hamas, but the group insisted that the restoration of humanitarian assistance to the war-ravaged territory was "the minimum requirement" for talks.
It also warned that Gaza was not "for sale" hours after US President Donald Trump, on a visit to the region, again floated taking over the territory and turning it into "a freedom zone".
Gaza's civil defence agency said the death toll from Israeli bombardment since dawn today had risen to 103.
Israel's aid blockade preceded a resumption of military operations on 18 March, ending a ceasefire that had largely halted hostilities since mid-January.
For weeks, UN agencies have warned that supplies of everything from food and clean water to fuel and medicines are reaching new lows.
"Israel's blockade has transcended military tactics to become a tool of extermination," Human Rights Watch interim executive director Federico Borello said.
AFPTV footage from the aftermath of a strike on Deir al-Balah in the centre of the territory showed flattened buildings and piles of concrete rubble.
"We pray for this war to end, and we appeal to all international institutions to end the war because enough is enough," said Gaza resident Maher Ghanem, his arm in a sling.
The attacks come after rescuers said that at least 80 people died across Gaza yesterday,
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said after he spoke with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that Washington is troubled by the humanitarian situation in Gaza.
Mr Rubio, speaking to reporters in Antalya, Turkey, said the US was "not immune or in any way insensitive to the suffering of people in Gaza," where no humanitarian assistance has been delivered since 2 March.
He repeated the Trump administration's stance that Hamas militants, who launched the October 2023 attacks that began the conflict, are to blame for the situation in Gaza.
"We think that the elimination of Hamas is what achieves peace. We're troubled by the humanitarian situation," Mr Rubio said.
It was the first time Mr Rubio has addressed the situation in Gaza since the US-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation announced it will start work in Gaza by the end of May under a
heavily-criticized distribution plan.
He said he had heard criticism of the plan and that the US was open to an alternative plan.
"It allows people to get aid without Hamas stealing it," Mr Rubio said. "We'll continue to work towards that in ways that we think are constructive and productive."
Gaza not 'for sale'
Israel says the aid stoppage and military pressure are meant to force Hamas to free the remaining hostages seized during the October 2023 attack that triggered the war.
But senior Hamas official Basem Naim said the entry of aid into Gaza was "the minimum requirement for a conducive and constructive negotiation environment".
"Access to food, water, and medicine is a fundamental human right - not a subject for negotiation," he added.
The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, a US-supported NGO, said it would begin distributing humanitarian aid in Gaza this month after talks with Israeli officials.
But the United Nations has ruled out involvement with the initiative.
"As we've stated repeatedly, this particular distribution plan does not accord with our basic principles, including those of impartiality, neutrality, independence, and we will not be participating in this," said UN spokesman Farhan Haq.
Mr Trump said he wanted the US to "get involved" in Gaza.
"I have concepts for Gaza that I think are very good... let the United States get involved and make it just a freedom zone," he said on the Qatar leg of a Gulf tour, adding he would be "proud to have the United States have it, take it, make it a freedom zone".
We need your consent to load this rte-player contentWe use rte-player to manage extra content that can set cookies on your device and collect data about your activity. Please review their details and accept them to load the content.Manage Preferences
The comments echoed an idea he floated in February for the US to "take over" the devastated territory and redevelop it into "the Riviera of the Middle East".
Hamas official Mr Naim said "Gaza is an integral part of Palestinian land - it is not real estate for sale on the open market".
Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas - in remarks addressing a UN commemoration of the "Nakba", the flight or expulsion of an estimated 700,000 Palestinians during the creation of Israel in 1948 - warned against repeating the displacement of his people in Gaza.
The UN estimates that 70% of Gaza is now either an Israeli-declared no-go zone or under evacuation order.
The health ministry in the Hamas-run territory said 2,876 people have been killed since Israel resumed strikes on 18 March, taking the war's overall toll to 53,010.
The Hamas attack resulted in the deaths of 1,218 people on the Israeli side, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official figures.
Of the 251 hostages taken during the attack, 57 remain in Gaza, including 34 the military says are dead.
Read more: Patients flee Gaza hospital after strikes, doctor says
