Gaza truce talks faltering over withdrawal; 17 reported killed in latest shooting near aid

Progress is stalling at talks aimed at securing a ceasefire in Gaza, with the sides divided over the extent of Israeli forces' withdrawal from the Palestinian enclave, Palestinian and Israeli sources familiar with the negotiations in Doha said on Saturday, Reuters reported.

The indirect talks over a U.S. proposal for a 60-day ceasefire continued throughout Saturday, an Israeli official told Reuters, seven days since talks began. U.S. President Donald Trump has said he hoped for a breakthrough soon based on a new U.S.-backed ceasefire proposal.

In Gaza, medics said 17 people trying to get food aid were killed on Saturday when Israeli troops opened fire, the latest mass shooting around a U.S.-backed aid distribution system that the U.N. says has resulted in 800 people killed in six weeks.

Witnesses who spoke to Reuters described people being shot in the head and torso. Reuters saw several bodies of victims wrapped in white shrouds as family members wept at Nasser Hospital. The Israeli military said its troops had fired warning shots, but that its review of the incident had found no evidence of anyone hurt by its soldiers' fire.