Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stated Tuesday he has ordered the military to instantly perform “highly effective strikes” in Gaza, and Hamas responded by saying it will delay handing over the physique of a hostage, placing new stress on the tenuous U.S.-brokered ceasefire.
Related Press reporters and witnesses heard tank fireplace and noticed explosions in numerous elements of Gaza, together with in Gaza Metropolis and Deir al-Balah.
The order for the strikes got here after an Israeli official stated Hamas had fired on its forces in southern Gaza and after the Palestinian militant group handed over physique elements on Monday that Israel stated had been the partial stays of a hostage recovered earlier within the battle.
Netanyahu referred to as the return of those physique elements a “clear violation” of the ceasefire settlement, which requires Hamas to return the remaining hostages in Gaza as quickly as potential.
Israel’s Protection Minister Israel Katz stated in an announcement that Hamas would pay a “heavy value for attacking Israeli troopers in Gaza and for violating the settlement on returning the deceased hostages.” Israel notified the US earlier than launching the strikes on Tuesday, in accordance with two U.S. officers who spoke on situation of anonymity to debate delicate issues.
An AP reporter within the central Gaza metropolis of Deir al-Balah heard tanks firing from an space managed by the Israeli military. And in Gaza Metropolis, two well being officers reported strikes, together with close to the Shifa hospital.
Earlier within the day, Israeli troops had been shot at within the southern metropolis of Rafah and returned fireplace, in accordance with an Israeli army official who spoke on situation of anonymity as a result of there hasn’t been an official announcement but. In an announcement, Hamas denied involvement within the gunfire Rafah and reiterated its dedication to the ceasefire.
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“The violent strikes carried out by Israel throughout the Strip is a blatant violation of the ceasefire deal,” stated the group, calling on mediators and guarantors to instantly stress Israel to cease its escalations towards civilians and to abide by the ceasfire deal
Vice President JD Vance expressed confidence that the ceasefire would maintain. “That’s doesn’t imply there aren’t going to be little skirmishes right here and there,” Vance advised reporters on Capitol Hill.
Fragile ceasefire holds up to now regardless of exams
The ceasefire that started on Oct. 10 has largely held regardless of at the least two earlier flare-ups in violence.
On Oct. 19, Israel stated two Israeli troopers had been killed by Hamas fireplace. Israel responded with a sequence of strikes that killed over 40 Palestinians, in accordance with native well being officers. And over the weekend, Israel carried out an airstrike towards what it stated had been Islamic Jihad militants planning an assault, wounding a number of folks.
There are nonetheless 13 our bodies of hostages in Gaza. Hamas stated Tuesday it had recovered the physique of a hostage, however after Israel introduced the plans to strike Gaza, Hamas stated in an announcement it will delay the handover.
An Related Press videographer in Khan Younis witnessed Tuesday what gave the impression to be a white physique bag being carried out from a tunnel by a number of males, together with some masked militants, after which transported into an ambulance. It was not instantly clear what was within the bag.
The sluggish return of hostages’ our bodies is posing a problem to implementing the following phases of the ceasefire, which is able to tackle even knottier points, such because the disarmament of Hamas, the deployment of a world safety power in Gaza and deciding who will govern the territory.
Hamas has stated it’s struggling to find the our bodies amid the huge destruction in Gaza, whereas Israel has accused the militant group of purposely delaying their return.
Over the weekend, Egypt deployed a group of specialists and heavy tools to assist seek for the our bodies of the remaining hostages. That work continued Tuesday in Khan Younis and Nuseirat.
An Arab official concerned in negotiating the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas stated talks had been underway with each side to attempt to stop the truce from collapsing. “Each side violated the settlement, however there was no important breach,” stated the official, who spoke on situation of anonymity as a result of sensitivity of the matter.
The official stated violations included delays in handing over our bodies, the failure to open the Rafah crossing between Gaza and Egypt, delays evacuating sufferers out of Gaza, the restricted scale-up of assist supply, and “minor skirmishes” on the road that separates Israeli troops from the remainder of Gaza.
The stays returned in a single day have been recognized as belonging to Ofir Tzarfati, Netanyahu’s workplace stated.
Tzarfati was kidnapped from the Nova music competition through the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas-led assault on Israel that began the battle. In all, the militants killed some 1,200 those that day, largely civilians, and took 251 hostages.
Tzarfati was killed in captivity and his physique was retrieved by Israeli troops in November 2023. In March 2024, his household obtained further stays for burial.
Tzarfati’s household stated in an announcement that that is the third time “we have now been compelled to open Ofir’s grave and rebury our son.”
That is the second time for the reason that ceasefire that continues to be turned over by Hamas have been problematic. Israel stated one of many our bodies Hamas launched within the first week of the ceasefire belonged to an unidentified Palestinian.
Throughout a earlier ceasefire in February 2025, Hamas stated it handed over the our bodies of three hostages, Shiri Bibas and her two sons, however testing confirmed that one of many our bodies returned was recognized as a Palestinian lady. Shiri Bibas’ physique was returned a day later.
In change for 15 lifeless hostages returned from Gaza for the reason that ceasefire started, Israel has handed again to Gaza 195 Palestinian our bodies. The final 20 residing hostages had been returned to Israel initially of the ceasefire, and in change, Israel freed roughly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners.
Over 68,500 Palestinians have died within the two-year battle in Gaza, in accordance with Gaza’s Well being Ministry, which doesn’t distinguish between civilians and combatants in its rely. The ministry maintains detailed casualty information which are seen as usually dependable by U.N. businesses and impartial specialists. Israel has disputed them with out offering its personal toll.
Related Press writers Josef Federman and Renata Brito in Jerusalem, Menelaos Hadjicostis in Nicosia, Cyprus, Samy Magdy in Cairo, Sam Mednick in Rome, and Melanie Lidman in Tel Aviv, Israel, contributed to this report.
