Israel Conducts Lethal Strikes in Gaza Amid US Affirmations of Ceasefire Stability

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Israeli planes launched strikes in Gaza City on Tuesday after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accused the militant group Hamas of violating a ceasefire in the Palestinian territory and ordered his military to carry out “powerful attacks”.

Local health authorities said the strikes killed at least 26 people, including five in a house hit in the Bureij refugee camp in the central Gaza Strip, four in a building in Gaza City’s Sabra neighbourhood, and five in a car in Khan Younis. The attacks by Israeli planes continued into early Wednesday across the Gaza Strip, according to witnesses.

The Israeli military has yet to comment on the recent airstrikes, marking a new surge of violence that disrupts a fragile ceasefire that has only been in place for three weeks. This escalation comes shortly after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office announced he had authorized “powerful attacks” immediately.

The statement did not give a specific reason for the attacks, but an Israeli military official said Hamas had violated the ceasefire by carrying out an attack against Israeli forces in an area of the enclave that is under Israeli control.

“This is yet another blatant violation of the ceasefire,” the official said.

The US-backed ceasefire agreement went into effect on 10 October, halting two years of war that was triggered by deadly Hamas-led attacks on Israel on October 7 2023 and that has devastated the narrow coastal strip.

Both Israel and Hamas have traded accusations of breaching the ceasefire agreement.

The airstrikes on Gaza City this Tuesday followed what Israel referred to as a “targeted strike” last Saturday. This earlier operation focused on an individual in central Gaza whom Israeli forces alleged was plotting an assault on their troops.

US vice president JD Vance, part of a parade of Trump administration officials who visited Israel last week, said that despite the latest flare-up, “the ceasefire is holding”.

“That doesn’t mean that there aren’t going to be little skirmishes here and there,” he told reporters in Washington. “We know that Hamas or somebody else within Gaza attacked an (Israeli) soldier. We expect the Israelis are going to respond, but I think the president’s peace is going to hold despite that.”

Earlier on Tuesday, Israeli media reported an exchange of fire between Israeli forces and Hamas fighters in the southern Gaza city of Rafah. The Israeli military did not respond to a request for comment on the reports.

Hamas denied responsibility for an attack on Israeli forces in Rafah. The group also said in a statement that it remained committed to the ceasefire deal in Gaza.

According to the ceasefire agreement, Hamas was to release all living hostages in exchange for the release of nearly 2,000 Palestinians held in Israeli prisons, as well as wartime detainees. In return, Israel agreed to withdraw its troops and halt its military operations.

Netanyahu accuses Hamas of violating ceasefire

Netanyahu said earlier on Tuesday that Hamas had violated the ceasefire by turning over some wrong remains in a process of returning the bodies of hostages to Israel.

Netanyahu said the remains handed over on Monday belonged to Ofir Tzarfati, an Israeli killed during Hamas’ October 7 2023 attack. Tzarfati’s remains had already been partially retrieved by Israeli troops during the war.

Hamas initially said in response to this that it would hand over to Israel on Tuesday the body of a missing hostage found in a tunnel in Gaza. However, Hamas’ armed wing, Al-Qassam Brigades, said later it would postpone the planned handover, citing what it said were Israel’s violations of the ceasefire.

Hamas said Netanyahu was looking for excuses to back away from Israel’s obligations.

Under the ceasefire terms, Hamas released all living hostages in return for nearly 2,000 jailed Palestinians and wartime detainees, while Israel pulled back its troops and halted its offensive.

Search for hostage bodies

Hamas has also agreed to hand over the remains of all dead hostages yet to be recovered, but has said that it will take time to locate and retrieve the bodies amid Gaza’s ruins.

Israel says the militant group can access the remains of most of the hostages.

The issue has become one of the main sticking points in the ceasefire, which US President Donald Trump says he is watching closely.

Gaza health authorities say 68,000 people are confirmed killed in the Israeli strikes and thousands more are missing. Israel launched the war after Hamas fighters stormed through southern Israel, killing 1,200 people and bringing over 200 hostages back to Gaza.

The October 7 attack was a significant escalation in the long-standing conflict between Israel and Hamas.