US envoys discuss reopening of Rafah crossing with Netanyahu as two killed in Gaza
Israeli fire killed two Palestinians in the Tuffah neighbourhood in eastern Gaza City on Sunday, and an Israeli drone wounded four others in a separate incident in Gaza City, local health authorities said.
Medical workers said an Israeli drone exploded on the rooftop of a multi-floor building in Gaza City, wounding four civilians in the street nearby.
Meanwhile, US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner urged Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to reopen the Rafah crossing between Gaza and Egypt during talks in Jerusalem, Israeli media reported Sunday.
Israeli news site Ynet reported, citing an unnamed Israeli official, that while the meeting between Netanyahu, Witkoff and Kushner was "positive", Witkoff pressed Israel to reopen Rafah even before Hamas returns the remains of the last Israeli captive believed to be held in Gaza. The group says it is searching for the body amid the rubble.
Separately, a source at al-Shifa Hospital reported that several Palestinians were wounded when Israeli forces struck a building in the al-Rimal neighborhood, west of Gaza City.
According to Palestinian media, Israeli warplanes carried out four airstrikes on al-Tuffah since early Sunday morning. Israeli forces also detonated a booby-trapped vehicle near al-Batsh Cemetery, east of the neighborhood, causing further damage.
In northern Gaza, Israeli military vehicles opened heavy fire east of Jabaliya refugee camp, while Israeli artillery shelled multiple areas of the town, according to local reports.
This is Gaza now and the world is silent. pic.twitter.com/tNCbM0SeDI
— Mohamad Safa (@mhdksafa) January 24, 2026
Escalation in Khan Yunis
In the southern Gaza Strip, Israeli forces intensified military operations in eastern Khan Yunis, particularly in the town of Bani Suheila, where residents reported sustained artillery bombardment and active troop movements.
Al-Jazeera correspondent Rami Abu Ta‘eima said Israeli forces carried out widespread demolition and blasting operations, destroying residential buildings and entire housing blocks east of Khan Yunis.
Bulldozers were seen leveling neighborhoods, while Israeli forces established new military positions and observation towers in the area. Residents said Bani Suheila, which remains under Israeli military control, has been subjected to continuous shelling and systematic destruction of homes.
Earlier, Israeli occupation forces detonated a robotic device near al-Awda Hospital in northern Gaza, causing extensive damage to the facility and sparking a fire in a warehouse storing medicines and medical supplies, according to medical staff.
Footage showed thick smoke rising from the area following the explosion. Hospital officials warned that repeated targeting near medical facilities further threatens Gaza’s already crippled healthcare system.
