Israel's military confirmed the deaths of four more hostages held by Hamas - including three older men who were seen in a Hamas video begging for their release.
Around 80 hostages captured on October 7 are believed to be still alive in Gaza, alongside the remains of 43 others.
Israel’s military spokesperson Daniel Hagari, said the four men died together in the southern Gaza city of Khan Younis when Israel was operating there. The cause of death was not immediately known.
“We are checking all of the options,” Hagari said. “There are a lot of questions.”
G7 countries fully endorse Biden's ceasefire plan
The Group of Seven industrialized nations has fully endorsed a ceasefire proposal announced by the United States to try to end Israel’s war in Gaza, and has called on Hamas to accept it.
In a statement released by the Italian presidency Monday, the G7 urged countries with influence over Hamas to ensure that it accepts the deal.
US President Joe Biden detailed the three-phase deal on Friday, which calls for a full and complete ceasefire, the withdrawal of Israeli forces from densely populated areas of Gaza, and the release of a number of hostages in exchange for the release of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners.
In the statement, the G7 said its leaders “fully endorse and will stand behind the comprehensive deal” that Biden outlined. They reaffirmed support for a credible pathway to peace and a two-state solution.
“We call on Hamas to accept this deal, that Israel is ready to move forward with, and we urge countries with influence over Hamas to help ensure that it does so,” the statement said.
At least 11 killed during Israeli strikes
Israeli strikes killed at least 11 people overnight into Monday, including a woman and three children, in central Gaza, Palestinian health officials said.
A strike on a home in the built-up Bureij refugee camp late Sunday killed four people, including three children. The second strike early Monday killed seven people, including a woman, in the Nuseirat refugee camp.
The US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has pushed Israel and Hamas to agree on a new ceasefire and hostage deal, the latest in a line of attempts by Washington to stop the months-long hostilities in Gaza.
In a phone call to Israel's Defence Minister Yoav Gallant and war cabinet member Benny Gantz, Blinken “emphasised that Hamas should take the deal without delay,” the State Department said in a pair of statements on Sunday.
On Friday, US President Joe Biden said that Israel had offered Hamas a three-phase deal, declaring it was time to end the fighting in Gaza and that the extremist group is “no longer capable” of carrying out another large-scale attack on Israel.
While Hamas stated it viewed the proposal "positively," Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has insisted since that Israel will continue to pursue the war until it has destroyed Hamas, despite growing pressure at home.
One million displaced from Rafah
The number of people displaced from the southern Gazan city of Rafah has surpassed one million people, the United Nations Palestinian Refugee Agency (UNRWA) said in a statement posted on X.
Meanwhile, thousands of families were now looking for shelter in damaged and destroyed areas of Khan Younis, the agency added.
Israel is expanding its offensive in the southern Gaza city of Rafah, once the main hub of humanitarian aid operations.
The Israeli invasion has largely cut off the flow of food, medicine and other supplies to Palestinians facing widespread hunger.
Israel faces growing international criticism over the huge cost in civilian lives and the widespread destruction caused by its nearly eight-month war with Hamas.
Israeli bombardments and ground operations in the besieged territory have killed more than 36,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza's Health Ministry, which does not distinguish between combatants and civilians.
