Gaza's civil defence agency said Israeli forces opened fire on Sunday on a crowd of Palestinians waiting to collect humanitarian aid, providing a preliminary toll of at least 44 people killed. The latest deaths came as Pope Leo XIV slammed the "barbarity" of the war in Gaza in his traditional Sunday blessing.

Pope Leo XIV spoke to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu after a tank hit the only Catholic church in Gaza, killing three people.

Netanyahu held a call with Pope Leo XIV, where he expressed optimism about the hostage talks, while the Pope asked to keep sacred places safe from the war.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu telephoned Pope Leo XIV, who urged Israel's leader to revive negotiations and enact a ceasefire.

Pope Leo XIV urged “an immediate ceasefire” in the Gaza Strip. Not long before, an Israeli strike had hit Gaza’s sole Catholic Church, killing three people who had been sheltering there and injuring 10 more.