On Sunday, Israel reported that Palestinian militants had launched attacks against its troops across the Gaza cease-fire lines, prompting retaliatory airstrikes from Israel.
This recent surge in hostilities underscores the delicate nature of the truce, established just over a week ago, which had initially offered a glimmer of hope for an end to the two-year conflict. This incident marks another in a troubling string of violent outbreaks observed in Gaza since the cease-fire was implemented.
According to an Israeli military statement, militants in southern Gaza’s Rafah area first fired an anti-tank missile at Israeli forces, then followed with gunfire. Israel condemned these actions as a “blatant violation” of the standing cease-fire agreement.
In retaliation, Israeli forces launched strikes to “eliminate the threat” and dismantle tunnels and other military infrastructure in the area. Later on Sunday, the military announced a “series of strikes” against Hamas targets in southern Gaza, indicating a wider offensive. An Israeli military official, who requested anonymity, also confirmed that forces had targeted a group identified as armed militants attempting to cross the cease-fire line in northern Gaza.
Gaza’s health ministry confirmed 14 Palestinian fatalities between midnight and 5:30 p.m. on Sunday, without specifying whether they were combatants or civilians. The Israeli military did not provide immediate information regarding any casualties among its own forces.
While Hamas was not explicitly named in the military’s initial statement, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu directly attributed the renewed violence to the group. He stated that he had consulted with his defense minister and top security officials, instructing them to take decisive action against militant targets within Gaza.
Despite these developments, there was no indication that the Israeli government intended to abandon the broader cease-fire agreement.
In contrast, Hamas’s military wing issued a statement claiming to be “unaware of any events or clashes taking place in the Rafah area.” They further asserted that they had lost contact with their fighters in that region since a previous temporary cease-fire ended in March, thus having “no connection to any events taking place in those areas.”
Separately, Hamas’s military wing reiterated its commitment to upholding the cease-fire.
Izzat al-Rishq, a Hamas official, released a separate statement on Sunday, accusing Israel of persistent truce violations and of fabricating “flimsy pretexts to justify its crimes.”
This incident follows a separate event on Friday, where the Israeli military opened fire on a vehicle in northern Gaza. A Gaza rescue service, operating under the territory’s Hamas-run Interior Ministry, reported that this strike resulted in at least nine deaths, including four children.
Regarding the Friday incident, the Israeli military stated that the vehicle had crossed a demarcation line into an area where Israeli forces had withdrawn as per the cease-fire terms. They added that shots were fired at the “suspicious” vehicle only after it failed to respond to warning shots.
The Israeli military has consistently cautioned civilians against crossing new demarcation lines or approaching its troops in Israeli-controlled zones. However, many Gazans, often without internet access, struggling with ambiguous maps, or simply disoriented within the devastated enclave, have at times been uncertain about inadvertently entering restricted areas.
Following Sunday’s violence, hard-line members of Prime Minister Netanyahu’s government immediately urged a full resumption of Israel’s offensive against Hamas, the militant group responsible for the October 7, 2023, attack that initiated the war.
Itamar Ben-Gvir, the ultranationalist Minister of National Security, demanded that fighting resume “at full strength.” He argued that any belief in Hamas’s adherence to the cease-fire agreement was ” predictably proving dangerous to our security.”
Mr. Ben-Gvir was among the far-right ministers who had initially opposed the cease-fire, advocating for continued military action until Hamas was entirely defeated.
Israel maintains control over approximately half of Gaza’s territory and has accused Hamas fighters of utilizing tunnels beneath these Israeli-controlled areas for their operations.
Additionally, Israeli officials have voiced frustration regarding the slow rate at which Hamas has been returning the remains of deceased captives, a crucial component of the cease-fire agreement.
Over the past week, Hamas reportedly released the final 20 living Israeli hostages and handed over the bodies of 12 deceased captives, according to the Israeli government. However, a 13th body provided by Hamas was later determined by forensic experts not to be that of any of the captives.
In exchange, Israel has released nearly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners and transferred the bodies of over 100 Palestinians to Gaza.
Israel identified two of the deceased hostages, whose bodies were returned late Saturday, as Ronen Engel, 54, and Sonthaya Oakkharasri, 30, a Thai national who had been employed in agriculture in the border community of Be’eri.
Mr. Engel was tragically killed in Nir Oz, another Israeli border community devastated during the Hamas-led attack in 2023, and his body had subsequently been taken into Gaza.
According to the Israeli government, the remains of 16 other captives are still believed to be in Gaza.
Hamas has consistently stated that locating and recovering all remaining bodies is a challenging task, as some are buried deep beneath rubble and necessitate heavy machinery for extraction.