Israel strikes Gaza as US says it will veto additional UN cease-fire resolution

Israel launched strikes across Gaza Saturday night that killed at least 18 people as the United States said it would veto an additional United Nations cease-fire resolution. 

The Associated Press reported that an airstrike in Rafah killed six people overnight — including a woman and three children — while another strike in Khan Younis killed five men. The AP reported another airstrike in Gaza City killed seven people in a family home, according to Sayed al-Afifi, a family member of the deceased.

The airstrikes come as the U.S. has said it will veto a draft resolution circulated by Algeria calling for an immediate cease-fire and unhindered humanitarian assistance. According to the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry,  at least 28,985 Palestinians have been killed in the war so far, the AP noted.

Instead, the U.S. is aiming to help broker a hostage deal between Israel and militant group Hamas. U.S. Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield said in a statement Saturday that the draft resolution will “not be adopted.”

“The United States will continue to engage in the diplomacy necessary to get a hostage deal over the finish line, and will be candid with Israeli and regional leaders regarding our expectations for the protection of more than one million civilians in Rafah,” Thomas-Greenfield said.

“It is critical that other parties give this process the best odds of succeeding, rather than push measures that put it — and the opportunity for an enduring resolution of hostilities — in jeopardy,” she continued.

The U.S., Qatar and Egypt have been attempting to negotiate a temporary cease-fire agreement and a hostage release. However, the AP reported that Qatar said Saturday that the talks “have not been progressing as expected.”

The Oct. 7 attacks on Israel left about 1,200 people dead while about another 250 were taken as hostages. A temporary cease-fire agreement last year released dozens of hostages, but a large number still remain in Gaza.

The Associated Press contributed