In one of its biggest attacks since a ceasefire took effect in January, Israel launched a wave of airstrikes across the Gaza Strip early Tuesday, reportedly killing over 400 people.
Strikes were reported in multiple locations including northern Gaza, Gaza City and the Deir al-Balah, Khan Younis and Rafah in central and southern Gaza Strip.
Among those killed in airstrikes on their homes were Essam Addalees, the de facto head of the Hamas government, Ahmed Al-Hetta, deputy justice minister and Mahmoud Abu Watfa, the deputy minister of interior and head of the Hamas-run security services, Hamas said, as per Reuters.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office accused Hamas of "repeated refusal to release our hostages" and rejecting proposals from US President Donald Trump's Mideast envoy Steve Witkoff as well as from the mediators.
"Israel will, from now on, act against Hamas with increasing military strength," it said in a statement.
These attacks were much broader in scope compared to the regular drone strikes the Israeli military has acknowledged targeting individuals or small groups of suspected militants. They followed weeks of failed negotiations to prolong the truce agreed upon on January 19.
Hamas has asserted on sticking with the initial terms of the deal, which was scheduled to enter its second phase at the beginning of the month. The second phase envisioned Israel fully withdrawing from Gaza with an agreement on permanently ending the war in exchange for the release of all living hostages taken by Hamas in its October 7, 2023 attack on Israel that started the war.
However, Netanyahu has long insisted that Israel will not end the war until Hamas’s governing and military capabilities have been destroyed.
In accordance, Israel refused to even hold talks over the terms of phase two, according to a report by The Times of Israel.
On the airstrikes conducted by Israel early Tuesday, the White House said it had been consulted and voiced support for the country’s actions.
“As President Trump has made it clear, Hamas, the Houthis, Iran — all those who seek to terrorise not just Israel, but also the United States of America — will see a price to pay: All hell will break lose,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told Fox News.
Meanwhile, White House National Security Council spokesperson Brian Hughes told The Times of Israel, “Hamas could have released hostages to extend the ceasefire but instead chose refusal and war.”
US President Donald Trump was instrumental in brokering the ceasefire agreement, as his envoy, Witkoff, pushed Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu to accept the January hostage deal following prolonged deadlock under the previous Biden administration.
Although Trump has advocated for ending global conflicts, he has shown little patience with Hamas, issuing repeated warnings of destruction if the hostages remained in captivity.
The Palestinian militant group Hamas issued a statement accusing Israel of breaching the ceasefire. It said Israel had overturned the ceasefire agreement, leaving the fate of 59 hostages still held in Gaza uncertain.
The war erupted when Hamas-led militants stormed into southern Israel on October 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and taking 251 hostages.
Most have been released in ceasefires or other deals, with Israeli forces rescuing only eight and recovering dozens of bodies.
Israel responded with a military offensive that killed over 48,000 Palestinians, according to local health officials, and displaced an estimated 90 per cent of Gaza's population.
(With agencies inputs)
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