Reports: 21 killed, 30 injured in Israeli airstrike in central Gaza

At least 21 people have been killed and 30 injured in an Israeli airstrike in Gaza, Palestinian reports said on Saturday, as Hamas released another video of a hostage abducted during the October 7 attacks.

Al-Awda hospital staff told dpa the strike hit a residential building in the Nuseirat refugee neighbourhood in central Gaza.

The information could not be independently verified and there was no confirmation of the attack from the Israeli military.

According to Palestinian figures, more than 44,000 people have died in Gaza since Israel launched its response to the October 7, 2023, attacks by the Palestinian militant group Hamas.

Talks on a ceasefire and the release of hostages have been at a standstill for months, but Hamas released a new video featuring an Israeli hostage on Saturday.

The hostage, a 25-year-old man, said that part of him was dying every day and that isolation was killing the remaining hostages, who had scarcely any food, water or medications.

He described living amongst rats and other vermin, and said he was suffering from skin ailments.

The man called on the people of Israel not to abandon the hostages, and accused Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the entire Israeli government of failure.

The hostages were paying the price for the failings of the Israeli leadership, he said.

Addressing his mother, he said he was aware of her work. She is one of the most influential people behind the movement pushing for the release of the hostages, including through mass demonstrations.

The circumstances surrounding the video and whether the man was under duress when it was recorded remain unclear.

The recording is not dated, but the man said he had been a Hamas prisoner "for more than 420 days."

The man was abducted from his house along with his partner, who was released more than a year ago in a deal between the Israeli government and Hamas.

The video came one week after Hamas released a recording of another surviving hostage.

Around 250 hostages were taken by Hamas and other extremists during the terrorist attacks. Roughly 100 are believed to be still in Gaza, although it is unclear how many remain alive.

Palestinian shot at West Bank checkpoint

Earlier on Saturday, Israeli police said security forces in the West Bank shot and killed a Palestinian man who had launched fireworks in their direction at the Qalandia checkpoint between Ramallah and Jerusalem.

It said the 27-year-old man was wearing a shirt featuring the logo of the Islamic State terrorist militia. A knife was found on his body.

The Qalandia checkpoint is one of the most important crossings linking the West Bank to Jerusalem.

The Palestinian Health Ministry confirmed the man's death after his body was taken to hospital by the Red Crescent rescue service.

Tensions have risen in the Israeli-occupied West Bank since the October 7 attacks.

The Health Ministry in Ramallah reports that since then at least 769 Palestinians have since died in Israeli military operations, armed conflict and attacks by extremists.