The Israeli army has killed two Palestinians in Rafah in southern Gaza, according to the military, marking a new violation of a ceasefire deal in place since October.
The Israeli army said it dispatched tanks to the west of Rafah, opened fire, and carried out airstrikes.
The Hebrew daily, Israel Hayom, reported that two Israeli soldiers sustained light injuries during the clashes.
The Palestinian resistance group, Hamas, denounced the Israeli attacks as a "blatant violation" of the ceasefire agreement.
The group urged mediators and guarantor countries to condemn "the repeated Israeli violations," accusing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of overseeing the attacks under "false and fabricated pretexts."
Hamas also urged pressure on Israel to halt the violations, adhere to the ceasefire terms, reopen the Rafah crossing in both directions, allow the entry of humanitarian aid and shelter supplies, and immediately proceed to the second phase of the agreement.
Ceasefire talks
Meanwhile, a Hamas delegation arrived in the Egyptian capital, Cairo, for talks with officials on the next phase of the ceasefire.
In a statement, Hamas said the delegation is led by Khalil al-Hayya, the movement's leader in Gaza and head of its negotiating team.
The talks are set to focus on completing the implementation of the ceasefire, including remaining steps in the first phase and the reopening of the Rafah border crossing between Gaza and Egypt in both directions, the statement said.
Hamas added that discussions will also address accelerating the transition to the second phase of the agreement, including the formation of an administrative committee and the completion of Israel's withdrawal from Gaza.
Israel has killed over 71,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children, in its genocide in Gaza since October 2023.
It has reduced most of the blockaded enclave to ruins and displaced all of its population.
