US President Joe Biden’s national security adviser is holding talks in Israel as part of renewed efforts to reach a cease-fire agreement in the Gaza Strip.
Jake Sullivan met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday afternoon.
His visit comes as Israeli forces continue military operations in Gaza, including the southernmost city of Rafah.
Hundreds of thousands of people were evacuated from the city on orders from the Israeli military.
Sullivan is expected to urge Israel to avoid a full-scale attack on the city of Rafah. The United States has previously said it would stop supplying some weapons to Israel if it launches a large-scale ground attack on the city.
But Israeli officials told Reuters that Netanyahu and his senior aides would try to reach an agreement with Sullivan that pressure on Rafah was needed.
Gaza’s al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital said Sunday that at least 20 people were killed and several others injured in a missile attack on Nuseyrat refugee camp in central Gaza. The Israeli military said it was confirming the reports, adding that two soldiers were killed in fighting in the south on Saturday.
There have been discussions in the past about the possibility of a ceasefire, but to little avail.
Earlier this month, Hamas supported a proposal put forward by Egyptian and Qatari mediators. But Israel said the offer agreed to by Hamas was not the same as the one it had already accepted.
Israel also rejected proposals for a “permanent” ceasefire, saying the release of bodies but not hostages was unacceptable.
Last year, Israel launched a military operation in the Gaza Strip in response to Hamas attacks on southern Israel, resulting in approximately 1,200 Hamas deaths and 252 hostages.
More than 35,456 people have been killed in Gaza since then, according to the Hamas-controlled region’s health ministry.
