The call came in the middle of the night, Mohammed Shula said. His daughter-in-law, eight months pregnant with her first child, was whispering. There was panic in her voice. “Help, please,” Shula recalled her saying.

The fatal shooting of 23-year-old Sondos Shalabi, eight months pregnant with her first child, comes as Israel escalates violence against civilians in the occupied territory.

Israel is releasing 183 Palestinian prisoners in the latest exchange for Israeli hostages held in Gaza, part of a ceasefire that has paused the war but whose future is uncertain.

A spokesman for the armed wing of Hamas says the group is postponing the next scheduled release of Israeli hostages, blaming what he says are Israeli violations of the ceasefire deal. Three hostages held in Gaza are due to be freed on Saturday in exchange for more Palestinian prisoners held in Israel.