Overnight, Israeli airstrikes reportedly killed at least 100 people across Gaza, according to local health officials. This grim toll marks what appears to be the deadliest day since the cease-fire between Israel and Hamas was established three weeks prior.
The renewed strikes commenced late Tuesday after the Israeli government accused Hamas of breaching the truce. Israel cited Hamas’s alleged failure to return the remains of deceased hostages and an attack on Israeli forces in Rafah, southern Gaza. The Israeli military confirmed that one of its soldiers, Master Sgt. Yona Efraim, was killed in the Rafah incident.
On Wednesday, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz stated that “dozens of Hamas commanders” were eliminated in the overnight operations. Despite the intense activity, the military announced that the cease-fire had resumed by 10 a.m. local time.
Health officials in Gaza underscored the devastating impact, reporting at least 100 fatalities in the enclave. Munir al-Bursh, the director-general of Gaza’s health ministry, whose data does not differentiate between civilians and combatants, revealed that 35 children were among those killed. He also highlighted the critical shortages of resources and medicines that continue to plague hospitals in Gaza. Gaza’s Civil Defense emergency rescue service corroborated the death toll, affirming that over 100 people had been killed.
Image: Dr. Dania al-Deeb holds the body of her four-year-old daughter, who she says was killed in Khan Younis, Gaza after an Israeli military strike.
These recent strikes unfolded against a backdrop of increasing tensions, fueled by delays in the exchange of deceased captives between Israel and Hamas—a crucial component of the fragile cease-fire deal enacted earlier this month.
The situation escalated dramatically on Tuesday with an attack by gunmen on Israeli soldiers in southern Gaza. The military stated that militants opened fire on Israeli troops who were engaged in dismantling a Hamas tunnel in an area under Israeli military control in eastern Gaza.
Adding to the complexity, the Israeli military also released drone footage on Tuesday. They claimed the video showed Hamas attempting to “create a false impression” regarding its efforts to locate deceased hostages. However, Hamas denied any involvement in the Rafah attack and maintained that it was diligently working to recover and return the remains of hostages taken from Israel during the October 7, 2023, attack that initiated the war.
Image: A Palestinian man inspects his home in Khan Younis, Gaza after it was destroyed by a military strike.
The drone footage notably depicted Hamas members seemingly staging the discovery of a deceased hostage while observers from the Red Cross were present. The international aid group confirmed its staff was unaware that a body had been moved before their arrival, stating emphatically that “It is unacceptable that a fake recovery was staged.” When questioned about the video, Hamas referred to a previous statement accusing Israel of manufacturing false pretexts for launching military action.
Following its decision to launch strikes, David Mencer, a spokesperson for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, explicitly cited both the shooting incident and the events depicted in the video as clear violations of the existing cease-fire agreement.