Israel says it killed Hamas commander, he allegedly fell in airstrikes

Tensions in the Gaza Strip are escalating again. The Israeli army said on Sunday that local Hamas commander Alaa Al-Hadidi, who was in charge of supplies, was killed in Saturday's attacks.

Although the army later retracted that report, it promised to issue an official statement.

At the same time, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reported that five senior Hamas members had been killed during the weekend fighting. The attacks came after the militants sent one of their fighters into Israeli territory.

According to medics, Israeli airstrikes claimed at least 20 lives.

Against the backdrop of the tensions, a Hamas delegation arrived in Cairo to negotiate a ceasefire with the support of Egypt, Qatar and the US. Hamas claims that Israel is systematically violating the agreement.

(reuters, swag)