JERUSALEM/UNITED NATIONS/RAMALLAH/SANAA - Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Tuesday that "significant progress" had been made in negotiations for a hostage release deal with Hamas, but cautioned that it was too early to raise hopes.

"We are working around the clock at this time, continuously. I hope we will be able to move forward," Netanyahu said in a video statement.

His office later said that, in light of "certain progress in the negotiations", Netanyahu was convening a meeting on Tuesday evening with senior defense officials and members of the negotiating team to receive updates on the proposed framework and discuss next steps.

Israel resumed its military offensive in Gaza in March, ending a two-month truce under which 33 hostages were freed. Since then, Qatari, Egyptian, and US mediators have continued efforts to broker a new deal, but no breakthrough has been reached.

Israeli officials say 55 hostages remain in Gaza, including at least 20 who are alive. The hostages were abducted during Hamas' deadly cross-border attack on Oct 7, 2023, which triggered the ongoing war.

Israeli attacks have killed more than 54,980 people in Gaza, according to health authorities in the territory.

Israel intercepts rocket from Gaza

Also on Tuesday, the Israeli military said it had intercepted a projectile launched from the northern Gaza Strip.

The projectile triggered air raid sirens in the nearby Zikim beach, the military said in a statement. No casualties or damage were reported so far.

Israel's Ynet news site reported it was the first rocket fired from the enclave toward Israel in 10 days. Rockets from Gaza have become rare as Israel continues its 20-month offensive in the enclave, which devastated most of the territory.

Meanwhile, Israel continued its assaults across the Gaza Strip, including in a food distribution site of the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation. In two separate incidents, Israeli forces opened fire at crowds making their way to the site, killing at least 17 people and injuring 130 others, according to the Gaza health authorities.

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The military released a statement acknowledging that troops opened fire in the area of Wadi Gaza, located "hundreds of meters" from the aid distribution point. It said the fire was "warning shots to distance suspects who were advancing in the area of Wadi Gaza and posed a threat to the troops."

'Some Gazans loot UN trucks'

Meanwhile, UN humanitarians said on Tuesday that Hungry civilians loot some UN aid just cleared into Gaza while others were reportedly gunned down at the Israeli-approved militarized relief distribution sites.

"Some supplies - mainly flour - were collected from Kerem Shalom crossing," said the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA). "The aid was bound for Gaza City but was taken directly from the trucks by hungry and desperate people who have now endured months of deprivation."

Hungry and displaced people have also reportedly been killed while risking their lives to access food at militarized distribution hubs, it said.

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The new militarized sites are the handful of hubs established by the US-run Gaza Humanitarian Foundation. Israel supports the new scheme, alleging that Hamas was routinely hijacking UN aid supplies to distribute on its own.

OCHA also said there have been violent looting and attacks on truck drivers, which are entirely unacceptable. Israel, as the occupying power, bears responsibility for public order and safety in Gaza. That should include allowing in far more essential supplies through multiple crossings and routes to meet humanitarian needs and help reduce looting.

Palestinian man killed by Israeli army

Separately, a Palestinian man was killed and another injured on Tuesday during an Israeli army raid in the Old City of Nablus in the northern West Bank, according to a Palestinian official.

Nablus Governor Ghassan Daghlas told Xinhua that the Israeli army shot and detained two young men in the town. One of them was confirmed dead later, while the condition of the other remains unknown.

The Israeli army carried out a large-scale military operation in Nablus for several hours on Tuesday, according to Palestinian security sources.

Daghlas noted the Israeli army raided neighborhoods in the Old City, storming hundreds of homes and destroying properties.

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He added that all public and private institutions were closed due to the widespread raids, leading to the postponement of the education ministry's recruitment exam.

Israeli strikes hit Yemen's ports 

On Tuesday morning, Israel attacked Yemen's Red Sea ports in Hodeidah province, targeting facilities and docks, said Houthi-run al-Masirah TV and residents.

No casualties were reported yet as the Houthi rebel group, which controls much of northern Yemen, rarely discloses its losses.

The strikes came hours after the Israeli army issued advanced warnings, urging residents in three ports of Hodeidah province - which includes the Hodeidah port city, the Ras Isa fuel port and the As-Salif port - to leave before the Israeli military conducts strikes, according to Israeli official media.

The attack was aimed at stopping "the use of the port for military purposes", the Israeli military said, adding the strike was a response to surface-to-surface missiles that Houthi forces have fired towards Israel.

The Israeli army said in its statement that navy missile ships carried out the strike, the first time its warships have been involved in attacks against the Houthi forces.

This was the latest in a series of Israeli military strikes targeting Houthi-controlled targets since the Houthis started launching missiles and drones against Israel's Ben Gurion Airport and Israeli ports and ships in November 2023, to show its solidarity with Palestinians amid the ongoing Israel-Hamas conflict in Gaza. The group has said it would stop the attacks if Israel ends its military campaign and blockade of Gaza.

The group on Tuesday night claimed responsibility for launching two missile attacks toward Ben Gurion Airport.

"We targeted Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv, using two ballistic missiles, one of which was a hypersonic," Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Sarea said in the statement, aired by al-Masirah TV.

READ MORE: Israel intercepts missile fired from Yemen, Houthis claim responsibility

"One of the missiles directly hit Ben Gurion Airport, and the interceptor systems failed to intercept it," Sarea said, adding, "Our decision to ban air traffic to and from Ben Gurion Airport remains in effect, and we warn the remaining airline companies to immediately halt their flights."

Sarea noted that the group's missile attacks against Israel were "in response to the Israeli missile aggression on Yemen's ports of Hodeidah".