The death toll in Gaza continues to rise as Israeli attacks claim the lives of at least 46 Palestinians on Wednesday, while international mediators push for a truce and a captives-for-prisoners exchange deal.

Gaza's health system is on the brink of collapse as the conflict intensifies. Medical sources reported Wednesday's death toll to Al Jazeera, highlighting that Israeli forces also conducted raids across the occupied West Bank, killing three Palestinians.

Since the war began following Hamas's October 7, 2023, attack on southern Israel, at least 45,936 Palestinians have been killed, with 109,274 others injured, according to Palestinian officials. The October attack by Hamas killed 1,139 people and saw around 250 others taken captive, based on Israeli figures compiled by Al Jazeera.

Concentrated Strikes in Gaza

Most Israeli airstrikes on Wednesday targeted northern Gaza, particularly Gaza City, reported Tareq Abu Azzoum of Al Jazeera. A strike on a park in Gaza City killed five people, while an attack on a school in Jabalia, sheltering displaced families, killed four.

In central Gaza, a strike on a home in the Bureij refugee camp claimed the lives of 10 people, including women and children, according to survivors.

Hospitals Under Siege

Healthcare facilities in Gaza are overwhelmed and under fire. The Indonesian Hospital in northern Gaza has come under direct shelling, said nurse Rawya Taboura, who described dire conditions due to the lack of aid deliveries and ongoing attacks.

Northern Gaza’s three major hospitals remain non-operational, while in central Gaza, Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis ceased operations on Wednesday due to fuel shortages. The Al-Aqsa Hospital in Deir el-Balah reported a lack of basic medicine and supplies.

Aid agencies, including the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), have called for unhindered access to Gaza. The IFRC warned that harsh winter weather is worsening conditions for displaced families in makeshift camps, many of whom lack basic necessities such as blankets.

The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) reported that at least 74 children have been killed in Gaza in the first week of 2025, including eight newborns who died from hypothermia. More than one million children are among Gaza’s displaced population.

Raids in the West Bank

In the occupied West Bank, Israeli forces arrested 45 Palestinians since Tuesday night in raids across Hebron, Nablus, Tubas, Tulkarem, Ramallah, and Jerusalem, according to the Commission of Detainees and Ex-Detainees Affairs.

In Bethlehem, tear gas launched by Israeli soldiers injured teachers and students at a school after stones were thrown at military vehicles. In Tubas, an airstrike killed three Palestinians, including two children aged nine and 10. The Palestinian Foreign Ministry condemned the strike as a “heinous crime” and accused Israel of violating international law and the Geneva Conventions.

Ceasefire Negotiations

Despite ongoing violence, mediators from Qatar, Egypt, and the United States continue to negotiate a ceasefire and a prisoner exchange between Israel and Hamas.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken expressed optimism on Wednesday, stating that a deal was “very close.” However, previous efforts have failed, with both sides accusing each other of altering terms.

US President-elect Donald Trump’s Middle East envoy appointee, Steve Witkoff, announced plans to join the negotiations in Qatar. Trump warned on Tuesday that “all hell will break loose” if an agreement is not reached by the time he takes office on January 20, though he declined to specify what actions might follow.

Meanwhile, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz confirmed that the bodies of two captives, Youssef and Hamza Ziyadne, were recovered in Gaza on Wednesday.